Global wealth

Global Wealth Stratification Pyramid

Source: Data Synthesized from the UBS Global Wealth Report Framework — 2024 data

Global wealth is even more concentrated than global income. The average adult worldwide holds about $80,000 in net worth, but the global median is only $8,654 — the average is more than 9x the median, a far steeper skew than income shows.

Four wealth tiers, and a razor-thin apex

Just 60 million adults (1.6% of the global population) hold net worth over $1 million — and together they control $226 trillion, or 47.5% of the world's $470-trillion-plus household wealth pool. Another 628 million adults (16.6% of the population), with wealth between $100,000 and $1 million, hold $184 trillion (39.2%). Together, those two top tiers — under 20% of adults — hold nearly 87% of all global wealth.

Below them, 1.57 billion adults (41.1% of the population) hold wealth between $10,000 and $100,000, splitting $56.8 trillion (12.1%). And 1.55 billion adults — 40.7% of the world's population, wealth under $10,000 — collectively hold just $2.7 trillion, or 0.6% of global wealth.

Under 2% holds nearly half of everything

The starkest number on this chart: fewer than 2% of the world's adults hold nearly half of its total net assets, while more than 80% of the global adult population splits less than 13% of global capital between them. This mirrors — and amplifies — the US-only concentration shown in US Net Worth by Percentile.

Why this matters for your RatRace Score

Owning $100,000 in net worth already places an adult in the global top 17% or so by wealth. The RatRace Score doesn't care about that ranking directly — it cares whether that wealth is generating passive income that covers your expenses — but it's a reminder that meaningful global wealth thresholds are often lower than they feel from inside a high-cost-of-living economy.

See exactly where your own net worth ranks with the Net Worth Percentile Calculator.

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