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A Visual Breakdown of Who Owns America’s Wealth
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There are two types of households in the U.S.: the rich half and the poorer half.
And the data is quite striking in this regard.
This graphic breaks down America’s wealth (the total net worth of all U.S. households) by wealth percentile, and lists the number of households in each percentile.
Data for this chart is sourced from the Federal Reserve as of Q3, 2024.
U.S. Wealth Distribution is Top Heavy
For reference, the total net worth of all U.S. households is close to $160 trillion.
| Wealth Bands | Households | Wealth Owned | Share of U.S. Wealth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 50% | 66.5M | $156.0T | 98% |
| Bottom 50% | 66.6M | $3.9T | 2% |
The rich half own about $156 trillion (or about 98% of it). The poorer half only own about $4 trillion.
Breaking down that top half even further, the top 1% (1.3 million families) owns about $49 trillion (or about one-third of the total share) by themselves.
| Wealth Bands | Households | Wealth Owned | Share of U.S Wealth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 1% | 1.3M | $49.2T | 31% |
| 50-99th Percentile | 65.2M | $106.8T | 67% |
| Bottom 50% | 66.6M | $3.9T | 2% |
| Total | 133.1M | $159.9T | N/A |
And going even further, about half of that $49 trillion is owned by the top 0.1%. That’s only around 136,000 households and includes all of America’s wealthiest people.
Demographics of Wealth Bands
The Federal Reserve also has some insight of how much one needs to own in each wealth band.
From their last analysis in 2022, households with less than $192,000 were the bottom 50% of the country. This band also had a higher concentration Black or Hispanic families without a bachelor’s degree.
On the other hand, to be in the top 10% (not pictured in this graphic), a household needed at least $1.92 million in 2022. Asian and White families with at least a bachelor’s degree were overrepresented here.
To find out the threshold for the top 1%, a different source, DQYDJ, estimated $13.7 million as the minimum household wealth. It takes $62 million for a household’s net worth to be in the top 0.1%.
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The rich are, in fact, growing richer. Check out: The 1%’s Share of U.S. Wealth Over Time to see the gains made.
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