Net Worth by Age & Percentile Calculator

Frequently asked questions

Where does this data actually come from?

The Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), an ongoing study the Fed conducts every three years on the assets, liabilities and net worth of U.S. households. The specific figures here are the median and mean family net worth by age bracket from the Bulletin "Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2019 to 2022," Table 2, the Fed's own published 2022-survey numbers, not a third party's recomputation. This site inflation-adjusts those 2022-dollar figures to today's dollars using the same BLS Consumer Price Index data baked into the inflation calculator.

Is the percentile number exact?

Starting with that last point: no, and this tool says so plainly rather than implying otherwise. The Fed's published Bulletin gives median and mean net worth per age bracket, but not a full range of percentiles (10%, 25%, 75%, 90% and so on) by age. To estimate where a given net worth falls within a bracket, this tool applies a lognormal distribution, the standard first-order model economists use for wealth distributions, to the real median and mean for that bracket, then reads the percentile off that fitted curve. It's a solid, transparent estimate, not a lookup in the underlying respondent-level survey microdata, and the difference matters most for figures far from the median, where the lognormal fit is only an approximation of the real, messier distribution.

Why household net worth and not individual?

Because that's what the Fed survey measures. The SCF interviews households, not individuals, so net worth means all assets (checking and savings accounts, retirement accounts, home equity, investments, business equity, vehicles) minus all debts (mortgage, student loans, credit cards, other loans) for the household, not one person's share of it. If you're married or share finances with a partner, compare your combined household net worth, not just your individual accounts, for the comparison to mean what it claims to mean.

Why do the age brackets jump around so much?

Wealth compounds and life events cluster by age, so the underlying reality really is lumpy: median household net worth more than triples between the under-35 and 35-44 brackets in the Fed's own data, largely reflecting homeownership, retirement account balances and simply more years of saving and market growth. The 65-74 bracket peaks higher than 75-or-older, plausibly reflecting later-life spending down of savings. None of this is smoothed or adjusted by this tool, it's presented exactly as the Fed's survey found it, inflation-adjusted for dollar comparability only.

My net worth is negative. What does the tool show?

A percentile of 0%, which is what results from the lognormal distribution this tool uses to model the data, since log-based models can't represent zero or negative values. That's a real limitation worth naming rather than hiding: a meaningful share of households, especially younger ones with substantial student debt, do have negative net worth, and this tool can't distinguish between "slightly negative" and "deeply negative" the way a full percentile lookup could. The median and mean comparisons above the percentile figure still work normally regardless of sign, since they're direct division, not the lognormal model.

Why save a monthly snapshot instead of just checking back later?

The live figure is a snapshot of right now, not a record, and it will never reflect a past period. Saving a snapshot captures what your net worth and percentile actually were in a given month, so returning every month or two builds a real trend, useful context for whether you're gaining ground relative to your age group over time, not only in absolute dollars.

How is this different from other net worth by age tools?

Most either display a static reference table with no way to enter your own number, or simply compute a percentile that's left unexplained. This tool does three things together: shows its exact source (the Fed's own published table, linked and cited), explains in detail how the percentile is estimated rather than treating it as a black box, and lets you save a snapshot to watch your percentile move over time instead of only checking once.

Is my financial data private?

Yes, your age, net worth and any saved snapshots are stored locally using this browser's own IndexedDB storage on your device, and never sent anywhere else. There's no account to create, no bank link and, in this version, no export or sync between devices, so clearing your browser data or switching devices starts you over.