Your net worth is the most important number in personal finance — yet most people have never calculated it. It's not about how much you earn. It's about what you own minus what you owe. A doctor earning $300,000 a year with $600,000 in student debt and no savings has a lower net worth than a teacher earning $60,000 who's been investing for 20 years. Here's how to figure out where you actually stand.
Net worth is a simple equation:
Assets are everything you own that has monetary value. Liabilities are everything you owe. The difference is your net worth — which can be positive, zero, or negative (common early in life, especially with student debt).
Use current market values, not what you paid. Your house worth $400,000 today counts as $400,000 even if you paid $250,000 a decade ago.
Note: monthly expenses (rent, utilities, subscriptions) are not liabilities unless they've become debt you owe. A bill you'll receive next month isn't a liability today — a loan balance you already have is.
According to Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances data (2025 update), here's how Americans' net worth compares by age group:
| Age Group | Median Net Worth | Mean Net Worth |
|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | $39,000 | $183,000 |
| 35–44 | $135,000 | $549,000 |
| 45–54 | $247,000 | $975,000 |
| 55–64 | $364,000 | $1,566,000 |
| 65–74 | $410,000 | $1,794,000 |
| 75+ | $335,000 | $1,624,000 |
The mean (average) is dramatically higher than the median because a small number of billionaires and multi-millionaires skew the average upward. The median — the middle value — is a much more accurate picture of what a "typical" American has. If your net worth is above the median for your age, you're ahead of half of Americans.
A popular benchmark is the formula from The Millionaire Next Door: your expected net worth should equal your age multiplied by your gross annual income, divided by 10.
Example: a 40-year-old earning $100,000 should have a net worth of around $400,000. This is a rough guideline — it doesn't account for late career starts, inheritance, or high-cost-of-living areas. But it's a useful starting point.
Many people in their 20s and 30s have negative net worth — more debt than assets. This is completely normal and doesn't mean financial failure. Student loans, car loans, and mortgages (especially early when you've built little equity) all push net worth negative. The key is the trajectory: is your net worth growing each year?
A 28-year-old with -$30,000 net worth who is earning well, building equity, and adding to retirement accounts is in far better shape than one with -$30,000 who is making only minimum payments on consumer debt with no savings.
Investing $1,000/month in a diversified index fund from age 30 to 65 at a 7% average return produces approximately $1.7 million. The math is straightforward — the hard part is consistency.
Net worth is important but incomplete. A $500,000 net worth locked entirely in an illiquid primary residence isn't the same as $500,000 in liquid investments. An 80-year-old and a 30-year-old with identical net worth are in very different financial positions. Net worth is a snapshot — cash flow, liquidity, and risk profile complete the picture.
Add your assets and liabilities to get your complete net worth, see how you compare to US benchmarks for your age, and identify where to focus next.
Use the Free Calculator →