Average Net Worth by Age: The Fed's New 2025 Numbers
The Federal Reserve released its 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (opens in a new tab) on October 9, 2026, and the typical American family had a net worth of $215,900. The average was $1,241,500. Most pages on average net worth by age still quote the 2022 survey, and the new numbers moved in different directions for different ages: down sharply for families under 35, up strongly for those 75 and older.
What is the average net worth by age in the US?
Median net worth rises from $33,000 for families under 35 to $504,900 for those 75 and older. The averages run from $135,400 to $1,962,200. The age is that of the person the survey treats as the head of the family, and all figures are in 2025 dollars.
| Age | Median net worth | Average net worth | Median in 2022 (2025 dollars) | Change in median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | $33,000 | $135,400 | $42,700 | -23% |
| 35 to 44 | $155,600 | $681,900 | $148,400 | +5% |
| 45 to 54 | $253,700 | $1,244,500 | $270,600 | -6% |
| 55 to 64 | $411,900 | $1,878,000 | $398,900 | +3% |
| 65 to 74 | $431,300 | $1,897,600 | $448,600 | -4% |
| 75 and older | $504,900 | $1,962,200 | $367,300 | +37% |
| All families | $215,900 | $1,241,500 | $211,100 | +2% |
Federal Reserve, Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2022 to 2025 (opens in a new tab), table 2.
Why the average is so much higher than the median
The median is the family in the middle: line everyone up by net worth and take the one at the center. The average adds everyone together and divides, so a few families worth hundreds of millions raise it for everyone. Across all families, the average is almost six times the median. The median is the one to compare yourself with.
Why did net worth fall for families under 35?
Mostly because business values came back down. The Fed says the decline among young families was “primarily driven by the unwinding of business equity gains between 2019 and 2022.” Their median net worth fell 23% after inflation, and their average fell 33%, to $135,400.
Only about 1 in 10 families under 35 owns a business, so for most young families the bigger story is the one below: whether they own a home.
Why families 75 and older moved to the top
For the first time in several surveys, the oldest families had the highest median net worth, up 37% to $504,900. The Fed says that rise was “primarily driven by an increase in the value of retirement accounts.”
Does owning a home decide your net worth?
More than any other single factor. In 2025, the median homeowner had a net worth of $458,900, and the median renter had $10,600, according to the Fed. Homeowners gained 6% since 2022 and renters lost 7%.
Home ownership also climbs steeply with age, which explains much of the age pattern in the first table.
| Age | Families who own their home | Median home value, owners |
|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | 35.6% | $320,000 |
| 35 to 44 | 61.2% | $376,000 |
| 45 to 54 | 69.8% | $400,000 |
| 55 to 64 | 73.6% | $400,000 |
| 65 to 74 | 79.8% | $385,000 |
| 75 and older | 82.3% | $350,000 |
| All families | 65.6% | $375,000 |
Federal Reserve, Survey of Consumer Finances 2025 (opens in a new tab) historical tables, table 9. Home values are gross, before subtracting the mortgage.
Under 35, about a third of families own their home. By 45, more than two thirds do. A family’s net worth usually jumps once it starts paying down a mortgage on a home that’s gaining value.
What counts in net worth?
Net worth is everything a family owns minus everything it owes. The Fed counts homes and other property, retirement accounts like a 401(k) or IRA, checking and savings, stocks, bonds, vehicles and business equity. It subtracts mortgages, car loans, student loans and credit card balances.
The survey leaves out Social Security and traditional defined-benefit pensions. Both pay you an income later rather than holding a balance today. That matters most for older families and for public-sector workers, whose real retirement security is larger than their net worth shows.
How do you compare?
Add up what you own at today’s values, subtract every debt at its current balance, and compare the result with the median for your age, not the average. Then adjust for your situation. A 30-year-old who rents is being compared with a group where a third own a home, so being below $33,000 says less than it seems.
How lopsided wealth is matters too. The top 10% of families had a median net worth of $4,935,200 in 2025. The bottom quarter had a median of $1,700, and on average they owed more than they owned.
If you’re looking for where to start, the cash in checking and savings is the part most families can change week to week. Our guide to average savings by age shows what families actually keep there: a median of $5,000 under 35.
Making saving feel worth it
A home and a retirement account grow on their own schedule. Savings only grow when you add to them, and that’s where most people stall: you move $50, the balance ticks up, nothing else happens.
We make Lodavo, a prize-linked savings app built to change that. The more you save, the more free tickets you get for weekly cash prize draws, and your money stays in your own bank account, earning whatever it already earns. Lodavo is live in Canada and coming to the US.
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In Canada? Our Canadian guide to average net worth by age uses Statistics Canada’s numbers.
Frequently asked questions
What's a good net worth at 30?
Can net worth be negative?
Does net worth include Social Security?
Why do other sites show different numbers?
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