How I Landed in the Top 1% of Female Earners (2024)

FAQs

What puts you in the top 1% of earners? ›

To be in the top 1% of earners, you're looking at an average annual income of $819,324. The top 0.1% of Americans earn an average of $3,312,693.

You need more money than ever to enter the ranks of the top 1% of the richest Americans. To join the club of the wealthiest citizens in the U.S., you'll need at least $5.8 million, up about 15% up from $5.1 million one year ago, according to global real estate company Knight Frank's 2024 Wealth Report.

The top 1% earned an average of Rs. 53 lakh per year, 23 times more than the average Indian who earned Rs. 2.3 lakh, in 2022-23. The average income of the bottom 50% and the middle 40% stood at Rs. 71,000 and Rs.

Based on that figure, an annual income of $500,000 or more would make you rich. The Economic Policy Institute uses a different baseline to determine who constitutes the top 1% and the top 5%. For 2021, you're in the top 1% if you earn $819,324 or more each year. The top 5% of income earners make $335,891 per year.

Only 18% of individual Americans make more than $100,000 a year, according to 2023 data from careers website Zippia. About 34% of U.S. households earn more than $100,000 a year, according to Zippia.

In 2021, the median household income is roughly $68,000. An upper class income is usually considered at least 50% higher than the median household income. Therefore, an upper class income in America is $100,000 and higher. However, an upper class income also depends on where you live.

In contrast, the same figure increases to about $50,000 for median workers and further escalates steeply to about $400,000 for the top 2% earners. The figure below illustrates the average earnings between ages 25 and 55 of individuals in the bottom 2%, median and top 2% of the LE distribution.

There are estimated to be a little over 8 million households in the US with a net worth of $3 million or more.

What is considered wealthy in 2024? ›

To be considered very high net worth, one might need assets ranging from $5 million to $10 million, while an ultra-high net worth status could require $30 million or more. These figures underscore the subjective nature of financial classifications across different thresholds of wealth.

Household wealth or net worth is the value of assets owned by every member of the household minus their debt. The terms are used interchangeably in this report. Assets include owned homes, vehicles, financial accounts, retirement accounts, stocks, bonds and mutual funds, and more.

Net worth is the difference between the values of your assets and liabilities. The average American net worth is $1,063,700, as of 2022. Net worth averages increase with age from $183,500 for those 35 and under to $1,794,600 for those 65 to 74. Net worth, however, tends to drop for those 75 and older.

In 2020, according to Pew Research Center analysis, the median for upper income households was around $220,000 and the median for middle income households was slightly above $90,000.

According to the figure, 47 percent of the respondents believed that a person can be considered rich when the annual income exceeds 50,000 euros. Nine percent of the interviewees stated that in their opinion individuals who own more than one house, regardless of the income, are rich.

The top 1% of earners, then, make almost nine times the median income in the U.S. The people who earn enough to meet this threshold work in a range of industries and include doctors, lawyers, business owners and executives—but this also varies regionally.

In the U.S., it may take you $5.81 million to be in the top 1%, but it takes a minimum net worth of $30 million to be considered among the ultra-high net worth crowd. As of the end of 2023, this ultra-high net worth population is on the rise, reaching 626,000 globally, up from just over 600,000 a year earlier.

In contrast, the same figure increases to about $50,000 for median workers and further escalates steeply to about $400,000 for the top 2% earners. The figure below illustrates the average earnings between ages 25 and 55 of individuals in the bottom 2%, median and top 2% of the LE distribution.