So You Wanna Be a Millionaire: How Long Will It Take? (2024)

Long-time personal finance columnist Scott Burns writes that by working for four summers starting at age 16, putting the money in a Roth IRA, investing it wisely, and waiting until age 67, it’s simple to become a millionaire. That’s the 51-year plan. But what if you’re not that patient—or that young? Lucky for you, there are many ways to hit the million-dollar mark, but the faster you try to get there, the harder it becomes.

Key Takeaways

  • Becoming a millionaire may seem like it is out of reach for many Americans, but it is nonetheless achievable.
  • Being a diligent saver and investor in a well-diversified and tax-advantaged portfolio can help you get there, but this, of course, will take some patience.
  • If you start saving in your 20s, you can be on track to having at least a million bucks by the time you retire.

$1 Million the Hard Way

Let’s say you want to become a millionaire in five years. If you’re starting from scratch, online millionaire calculators (which return a variety of results given the same inputs) estimate that you’ll need to save anywhere from $13,000 to $15,500 a month and invest it wisely enough to earn an average of 10% a year. That means taking calculated risks, diversifying, and avoiding investment fees such as loads and broker commissions.

Obviously, in order to regularly save this much money each month, you’ll need to have a fantastic income. At the low end, to meet the $13,000 a month savings goal, you’d probably need to make around $265,000 annually. The specific number will vary considerably depending on your income tax situation, but the point is that it’s high.

According to the salary calculator at PaycheckCity.com, if you make $265,000 a year, are single, claim two exemptions on your federal tax return, and live in one of the nine states with no state income tax, you’d take home around $185,000 a year, or about $15,400 a month. Saving $13,000 would leave you with $2,400 a month to meet all your expenses—a perfectly reasonable number for many singles, and even some couples.

If you're willing to be extremely frugal—let’s say you can get by on a mere $700 a month—will it make a big difference? In this case, not really. You’d still need to make almost $250,000 a year.

If you’re in a committed relationship, however, things get a little easier. You can get away with making around $132,500 a year then, as long as your significant other can make up the difference and is on board with your savings plan. Of course, then you’ll have to share your millionaire status.

$1 Million the Harder Way

Of course, $132,500 (or $265,000) might seem attainable (or like pocket change) for some C-level executives, but according to PayScale.com, the median salary for workers with 20 or more years of experience was a mere $71,578 in July 2009. And it’s still only $125,166 for the average CFO with the same amount of experience. Becoming a millionaire in the short-term, therefore, requires a more ambitious strategy than steadily collecting a well-deserved paycheck.

Alan Corey, author of “A Million Bucks by 30” (2007), claims to have made a million dollars in seven years while earning a salary that more of us can relate to: $40,000 to $50,000 a year. He happened to put some of the money he saved while living very frugally in New York City in the right place (real estate) at the right time (the expansion of the most recent real-estate bubble). Of course, he also had some of the most important personality traits of success: determination, a strong work ethic, confidence, and a willingness to make some extreme sacrifices.

$1 Million the Easy Way

A short-term plan for creating wealth certainly includes these personality traits, but it often includes factors such as timing, luck, and/or possessing an incredibly valuable idea and knowing how to implement and market it. If you know you’re closer to average, consider a more traditional, more attainable approach.

The longer-term road to wealth involves such time-honored tactics as avoiding consumer debt, diversifying your investments, minimizing your investment fees, tax planning, minimizing housing expenses, and, for two-earner households, living on one income.

Putting aside someone's $40,000 in take-home pay every year—and earning that 10% return as described above—will get you to millionaire status in about 15 years. Halve those savings and you’re still only looking at 20 years. It will take more work for sure, but it’s a lot faster than 51.

So You Wanna Be a Millionaire: How Long Will It Take? (2024)

FAQs

How long should it take to become a millionaire? ›

A lot of people believe in get-rich-quick schemes, but the reality is that becoming a millionaire typically takes 27 years. This is according to a study conducted by Ramsey Solutions, which is the largest study of millionaires to date.

How hard is it to win Who Wants To Be A millionaire? ›

This is about a 1-in-1 million chance, which is still very, very unlikely. If you played WWTBAM every 30 minutes, 24-hours-a-day, it would “only” take you 57 years, on average, to win the million.

How long would it take to become a millionaire on minimum wage? ›

Well, if you make the US federal minimum wage of $7.25/hr (Roughly $14,500/year), you're looking at about 69,000 years. That's about 1/4 of the time humans have existed on earth. Things are a bit better if you earn the US median household income of $52,000 -- that'll only set you back 19,231 years.

How many questions are on Who Wants To Be A millionaire? ›

With the hiring of new host Chris Harrison, the format was changed once again to resemble that of the original Millionaire format. Each contestant faces 14 general-knowledge questions of increasing difficulty, with no time limit or information about the categories.

Is $2 million a multi millionaire? ›

Dated ways of describing someone worth n millions are "n-fold millionaire" and "millionaire n times over". Still commonly used is multimillionaire, which refers to individuals with net assets of 2 million or more of a currency.

Can I be a millionaire in 5 years? ›

Becoming a millionaire in five years is an extremely aggressive goal, but it could happen. Although hitting a home run with an investment is what dreams are made of, the most realistic path is to put aside big chunks of money every year. The historical average return for the S&P 500 index is 8%.

What is the secret to becoming a millionaire? ›

The secret sauce to becoming a millionaire is to invest part of your income every month, and let compound interest do its work. Every dollar you save by living frugally and avoiding debt is money that can help you build long-term wealth.

How to realistically become a millionaire? ›

8 Tips to Becoming a Millionaire
  1. Stay away from debt.
  2. Invest early and consistently.
  3. Make savings a priority.
  4. Increase your income to reach your goal faster.
  5. Cut unnecessary expenses.
  6. Keep your millionaire goal front and center.
  7. Work with an investing professional.
  8. Put your plan on repeat.
May 4, 2023

Is it rare to be a millionaire? ›

In fact, most Americans are unlikely to ever become a millionaire. Estimates vary, but they range from about 12 million to 24 million millionaires in America. While that sounds like a lot, even the upper limit of that range is less than 10% of the approximately 332 million people in the U.S.

What is the average age of a first time millionaire? ›

The world's 100 richest individuals earned their first $1 million at age 37, on average. The average millionaire is 57 years old.

How much does a millionaire make an hour? ›

How much does a Millionaire make? As of May 31, 2023, the average annual pay for the Millionaire jobs category in the United States is $47,712 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $22.94 an hour.

How many weeks to save $10,000? ›

Let's break it down. If you need to save $10,000 a year, that means saving $833.33 a month. Breaking it down even further, this means you'll have to save $192.31 each week or $27.40 every day. If you're sharing this with a spouse – cut these numbers in two.

What is the average millionaire? ›

Millionaires comprise about 8.8% of the American population. The average net worth of a millionaire in the U.S. is $2.2 million, according to Charles Schwab's 2022 Modern Wealth Survey. New Jersey boasts the highest rate of millionaires, with nearly 10% of households having a net worth of $1 million or above.

How much does the average millionaire read? ›

Reading. Millionaires spend more time reading than the general population, about 5.5 hours per week compared to 2 hours for everyone else.

Has anybody won $1000000 on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? ›

Kim Hunt. Kim won the million dollar prize on July 6, 2000.

Is $5 million net worth rich? ›

Someone who has $1 million in liquid assets, for instance, is usually considered to be a high net worth (HNW) individual. You might need $5 million to $10 million to qualify as having a very high net worth while it may take $30 million or more to be considered ultra-high net worth.

What income is rich? ›

With a $500,000+ income, you are considered rich, wherever you live! According to the IRS, any household who makes over $500,000 a year in 2023 is considered a top 1% income earner. Of course, some parts of the country require a higher income level to be in the top 1% income, e.g. Connecticut at $580,000.

Am I rich if I have $10 million dollars? ›

$10 Million Is A Top One Percent Net Worth

10 million dollars is a lot of millions. If you have a 10 million dollar net worth or higher, you have a top one percent net worth in America. Therefore, if you can't retire off 10 million dollars comfortably, you've got some serious problems!

Is 30 too old to become a millionaire? ›

It's never too late to achieve financial freedom! If you're thinking about becoming a millionaire, one of the most important things to do is try your hand at entrepreneurship. Look for a way to distinguish yourself and start making money with your own business and investments.

Is 28 too late to become a millionaire? ›

It is Never Too Late to Build Wealth.

It is not unheard of for people to become millionaires AFTER they retire. And, the average age when people become millionaires is 58.5 for women and 59.3 for men according to a report from Fidelity investments.

Do millionaires pay off debt or invest? ›

They stay away from debt.

Car payments, student loans, same-as-cash financing plans—these just aren't part of their vocabulary. That's why they win with money. They don't owe anything to the bank, so every dollar they earn stays with them to spend, save and give!

What job makes you a millionaire? ›

The jobs of millionaires
  • Investment banker.
  • Certified public accountant.
  • Entrepreneur.
  • Day trader.
  • Real estate agent.
  • Engineer.
  • Lawyer.
  • Actuary.
Apr 14, 2023

How much savings should I have at 25? ›

20% of Your Annual Income

Alice Rowen Hall, director of Rowen Homes, suggests that “individuals should aim to save at least 20% of their annual income by age 25.” For example, if someone is earning $60,000 per year, they should aim to have $12,000 saved by the age of 25.

How to become rich with $50,000? ›

Here are several ways you could invest $50,000:
  1. Take Advantage of the Stock Market. These days, you don't need a stockbroker to trade stocks. ...
  2. Invest in Mutual Funds or ETFs. ...
  3. Consider Real Estate Investing. ...
  4. Invest in Bonds. ...
  5. Invest in CDs. ...
  6. Fill a Savings Account. ...
  7. Try Peer-to-Peer Lending. ...
  8. Start Your Own Business.
Apr 5, 2023

Where do millionaires keep their money? ›

Examples of cash equivalents are money market mutual funds, certificates of deposit, commercial paper and Treasury bills. Some millionaires keep their cash in Treasury bills. They keep rolling them over to reinvest them, and liquidate them when they need the cash.

How much savings should I have at 35? ›

"By the age of 35, you should have saved at least twice your annual salary," he says. "So, for example, if you're earning $50,000 per year, you should aim to have at least $100,000 in savings by the age of 35."

How to save $1 million dollars in 5 years? ›

Tips for Saving $1 Million in 5 Years
  1. Capitalize on Compound Interest. ...
  2. Leverage Your Job. ...
  3. Establish Daily, Weekly and Monthly Savings Goals. ...
  4. Identify Ways to Increase Your Income. ...
  5. Find Simple Investments to Grow Your Money. ...
  6. Cut Expenses.
Mar 20, 2023

Do millionaires have a lot of cash? ›

Many millionaires keep a lot of their money in cash or highly liquid cash equivalents. They establish an emergency account before ever starting to invest. Millionaires bank differently than the rest of us. Any bank accounts they have are handled by a private banker who probably also manages their wealth.

Are most millionaires born or made? ›

Recent studies have shown that the notion that most millionaires are born into wealth is a myth. In fact, over two-thirds of millionaires are self-made, according to a 2019 study by Wealth-X and a study by Fidelity Investments.

Can a millionaire be broke? ›

If millionaires are relying on one primary stream of income, and that stream fails them, then they are in a position to go broke. This happens to millionaires the same way it happens to us. If you only have one job, or your household has only one breadwinner, then it can be devastating to lose that job.

Who is the youngest millionaires ever? ›

Austin Russell, the 28-year-old CEO of California-based Luminar Technologies, remains the world's youngest self-made billionaire, with a net worth of US$1.

At what age do people usually get rich? ›

The average age of a first time millionaires is 37, it has been found. In data released by Betway Insider, the average age of a first time billionaire is also revealed: and is a little higher at 51. So, if you're not quite there yet, what can you do to make your first million?

What month is most likely to become a millionaire? ›

If you are thinking about having a baby you might want to wait until early summer to conceive. A new study found that babies born in January and February are more likely to become rich and famous.

What is $1,000 dollar an hour salary? ›

No mater how you cut it, though, $1,000 an hour is impressive. Bill the annual average of 2,200 hours and that's a nice $2.2 million in gross pay.

How much is $50,000 a year hourly? ›

$50,000 per year is approximately $24.04 per hour, but it's not as simple as it may seem to convert annual salary to hourly pay. Information is accurate as of Feb. 15, 2023.

What is $100 000 a year hourly? ›

$100,000 is $48.08 an hour without vacation time.

If you work a full 40-hour week for 52 weeks, that amounts to 2,080 hours of work. So $100,000 a year in income divided by 2,080 is a $48.08 hourly wage.

What if I save $20 a week for 40 years? ›

If you start this saving plan now, in 40 years (at 5 percent annual rate of return on your savings) you'll have $131,900! That's what you'll have from saving just $20 a week. Why are you waiting? Let time work for you and start saving today!

What if I save $20 a week for 30 years? ›

For example: $20 Per Week invested in a Bank Account earning 3.5% after 30 years is estimated to be worth $55,169, or $20 Per Week invested in an Investment Portfolio earning 7.0% after 30 years is estimated to be worth $106,298. Use our Savings Calculator to project the impact of implementing a Savings Plan.

What if I save $50 a month for 20 years? ›

Let's start with the obvious: If you're not contributing any money to retirement, even $50 per month will make a substantial difference. That monthly contribution could add up to nearly $24,600 after 20 years, $56,700 after 30 years, and $119,800 after 40 years. That's still not enough to retire on, but it's a start.

What do 90% of millionaires make? ›

It is a well-known fact that 90% of the world's millionaires have made their fortunes through their timeous investments when buying, selling and renting out properties.

What do 90% of millionaires make over? ›

“90% of all millionaires become so through owning real estate.” This famous quote from Andrew Carnegie, one of the wealthiest entrepreneurs of all time, is just as relevant today as it was more than a century ago. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world have built their wealth through real estate.

Is it true that 90% of millionaires make over $100000 a year? ›

Choose the right career

And one crucial detail to note: Millionaire status doesn't equal a sky-high salary. “Only 31% averaged $100,000 a year over the course of their career,” the study found, “and one-third never made six figures in any single working year of their career.”

How many hours do rich people read a day? ›

The 5-Hour Rule Used by Bill Gates, Jack Ma and Elon Musk The most successful people on the planet are also the people most likely to devote an hour a day to reading and learning.

What does the average millionaire look like? ›

they're first-generation wealthy; most millionaires earn their wealth instead of inheriting it. they're well-educated; 80% have college degrees and more than 35% have advanced degrees. they save more than 15% of their money. they live well below their means, driving American-made cars and living in relatively modest ...

Who was the last person to win Millionaire? ›

Donald Fear, a history and politics teacher from Telford. On 11 September 2020, he became the first person during Clarkson's tenure as host to secure the top prize and sixth winner overall. He is also the first top-prize winner with lifelines to spare, using only the '50:50'.

Has anyone won the millionaire hot seat? ›

To date there have only been 4 millionaires, 2 on the regular version and 2 on Millionaire Hot Seat: Rob "Coach" Fulton: 17 October 2005.

What are the rules for the millionaire hot seat? ›

Each question is given a time limit: 15 seconds for questions 1-5, 30 seconds for questions 6-10, and 45 seconds for questions 11-15. The timer starts after McGuire reads the question and the four possible answers. Answers are confirmed by saying “lock it in” or “final answer”.

Is it hard to become a millionaire by 30? ›

The reality is that achieving millionaire status is doable if you take proper steps to plan ahead. In fact, it's possible to reach the million-dollar mark by age 30. The secret of how to become a millionaire begins with understanding which financial habits can help you grow wealth.

How hard is it to be a millionaire by 25? ›

It All Depends On When You Start

If you start making money at 16 years old, you would need to earn $305 per day to make it to $1 million by 25. Starting at 18, when you graduate high school, means you would need to earn $391 per day to make it to $1 million by age 25.

How long will it take to become a millionaire if I invest 1000 a month? ›

If you start saving $1000 a month at age 20 will grow to $1.6 million when you retire in 47 years.

How to turn $25,000 into a million? ›

Based on an investment of $25,000 today, it'd take a return of 13.08% per year to transform into $1 million in 30 years. If you require a shorter time to grow your investments, you'll need a higher return to arrive at $1 million sooner.

What age do most millionaires start? ›

Millionaire Statistics by Age

The world's 100 richest individuals earned their first $1 million at age 37, on average. The average millionaire is 57 years old.

What age is too late to be rich? ›

It is Never Too Late to Build Wealth

It is not unheard of for people to become millionaires AFTER they retire. And, the average age when people become millionaires is 58.5 for women and 59.3 for men according to a report from Fidelity investments. Don't ever think it is too late.

Is it too late for me to get rich? ›

It's Never Too Late to Get Rich. You can get rich - regardless of age, income, or marital status - by simply following the advises of this book. Once undertaken, these advises can change your life and how you think about accumulating wealth. The most important thing for you to do is to take action.

How rare is it to be a millionaire? ›

In fact, most Americans are unlikely to ever become a millionaire. Estimates vary, but they range from about 12 million to 24 million millionaires in America. While that sounds like a lot, even the upper limit of that range is less than 10% of the approximately 332 million people in the U.S.

Can I retire on $2 million at 65? ›

Yes, for some people, $2 million should be more than enough to retire. For others, $2 million may not even scratch the surface. The answer depends on your personal situation and there are lot of challenges you'll face. As of 2023, it seems the number of obstacles to a successful retirement continues to grow.

At what age can you retire with $1 million dollars? ›

A recent analysis determined that a $1 million retirement nest egg may only last about 20 years depending on what state you live in. Based on this, if you retire at age 65 and live until you turn 84, $1 million will probably be enough retirement savings for you.

Is saving $1,500 a month good? ›

Saving $1,500 a month is an excellent goal to have. It can help you build up your savings and put you in a better financial position for the future. Having this amount of money saved each month can give you more flexibility when it comes to making decisions about spending or investing.

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