Here’s What ‘Wealth’ Means To Americans in 2025
Written by
Peter Burns
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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Being wealthy in the U.S. isn’t what it used to be. In 1999, the TV show “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire” began running, where contestants could win up to $1 million by answering 15 multiple-choice questions correctly. At the time, it was an awe-inspiring amount of money. Today, $1 million remains a substantial sum, but it no longer symbolizes success as it once did.
What Is Wealth in 2025?
The threshold for being wealthy is difficult to determine. It’s easy to point to Elon Musk, who has upwards of $400 billion, and say he is wealthy. You can also consider the U.S. poverty line, where an individual working for the federal minimum wage earns $15,650 annually, and note that someone making that amount isn’t wealthy.
Financial company Charles Schwab took on the challenge of determining the line for wealth in a 2025 Modern Wealth Survey. This is the trend it found for what it took to be wealthy over the past five years:
- 2021: $1.9 million
- 2022: $2.2 million
- 2023: $2.2 million
- 2024: $2.5 million
- 2025: $2.3 million
The survey also found that Americans in general are finding it harder to become wealthy. When asked, 63% of those surveyed agreed that they feel like it takes more money to be wealthy today than in years past.
How To Become Wealthy
Social media is full of people claiming to be finance experts who promise quick wealth. The truth is, if there were an easy way to come up with $2.3 million, the bar for being wealthy would be much higher. Consider the following proven ways to build wealth over time.
Automate Bank Transfers
Instead of worrying about spending too much on Starbucks every morning or buying generic brand foods at the grocery store to save a few bucks a month, set up a system to automate where your money goes after you receive a paycheck.
Financial expert and New York Times bestselling author Ramit Sethi broke down the best way to do this. First, open a high-yield savings account and a Roth IRA, then link them to your checking account (assuming it receives your paycheck via direct deposit). Decide what percentage of your paycheck will go into each account, and set up automated transfers from your checking account for the day after your paycheck comes in. You should also set up automatic payments to credit cards, loans and bills to take place on the same day.
By doing this, your money will split into different accounts, and you won’t need to worry about putting money away for retirement, missing a credit card payment or not saving for a vacation. You can use the money you’re left with to spend however you wish over the course of the next month.
Build an Emergency Fund
One of the things you should be saving up for is an emergency. Emergency funds are accounts that protect you from unexpected expenses, such as major car or home repairs, medical bills or job loss. They help keep you out of debt and allow you to maintain healthy finances.
If you have no savings and must pay an unplanned expense, it can cause you to pull out your credit card or take out a loan. This can have lasting repercussions, skewing your budget in the future as you pay off interest.
Max Out Your 401(k)
Along with contributing money to a Roth IRA and savings account, if you have an employer offering a 401(k), you should take advantage of it. These retirement accounts take money out of your paycheck pretax. The funds can grow over time, unhindered by capital gains tax.
A 401(k) is an even better wealth-building tool if your employer matches your contributions up to a certain point. This means immediately doubling that portion of your money and investing it, which can boost your wealth quickly. However, you can’t access the funds in your 401(k) until the retirement age of 59 1/2. Your withdrawals also count as regular income, so you’ll need to pay taxes on them.
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