Why You're Probably Doing Better Than You Think

If you spent a day scrolling through social media, you would probably develop an expectation of success that meant being a millionaire by your 30s, or living a lavish lifestyle, traveling the world on private jets, and eating at the fanciest restaurants. This portrayal leaves most people feel like they’re behind or they aren’t “grinding” hard enough if they haven’t hit wealth milestones by a certain age. In reality, most millionaires in the United States are in their 60s, and aren’t living the lavish lifestyle you would think. The difference between actual levels of wealth in each age cohort, and the media portrayal, could not be more different. I recently finished reading Nick Maggiulli’s new book The Wealth Ladder, and as always, he’s done some amazing work digging into the data on what the average wealth level is for each age cohort in the United States.

In the book, Nick lays out a chart with the median wealth level for each age group in the United States.  What the chart reveals is that you may be way ahead of where you think you are relative to your peers, and relative to where social media would have you believe.  For example, the median age of someone in the United States with a net worth of over $1 million is 62, and less than one in four millionaires in the United States are under age 50.

If you have a net worth of $100k or more at any point in your 30s, you’re wealthier than half of people in that age group.  Not only that, but his data shows upward mobility in inflation adjusted net worth over both 10 and 20 year periods.  So if you aren’t a millionaire yet, your level of wealth even after accounting for inflation is likely to increase as you get older.  [1]

The moral of the story here is that if you’re reading this, you probably aren’t as far behind everyone else as you think, and that you’re likely to see an increase in your inflation adjusted net worth as time goes on.  So don’t get too caught up in social media’s portrayal of what someone your age should have. It’s a wildly inaccurate portrayal of reality, and odds are, you’re doing just fine. 

Disclaimer: The opinions voiced in this article are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. To determine which strategies or investments may be suitable for you, consult the appropriate qualified professional prior to making a decision.

[1] Maggiulli, N. (2025) The Wealth Ladder. Penguin Random House LLC