How much money do you need to qualify as a success?
For many people, the answer long has been $100,000 in salary and $1 million in total net worth. But in general, that is no longer the case, according to financial services company Empower.
Recently, the firm asked 2,203 American adults to define how much money you need to be considered successful. The query was part of Empower’s Secret to Success survey.
On average, respondents named an annual salary of $270,000 and a net worth of $5.3 million as qualifying as “successful.” However, answers varied considerably by generation.
Here are the amounts of money that four different generations said you need to be deemed successful. In defining each generation, we used numbers from Pew Research Center.
Generation Z
Annual salary that respondents in this generation said it takes to be financially successful: $587,797, on average
Net worth that they said it takes to be financially successful: $9,469,847, on average
How this generation is typically defined: People born in 1997 or later
Compared with other age cohorts, Generation Z defines financial success in ways that are simply off the charts.
For example, Gen Zers think you need well over $500,000 in annual salary to be successful. In reality, just 1% of U.S. workers earn $500,000.
However, don’t be too hard on these folks: One report found that Americans of all ages thought 19% of their peers earned at least a half-million dollars a year.
Millennials
Annual salary that respondents in this generation said it takes to be financially successful: $180,865, on average
Net worth that they said it takes to be financially successful: $5,638,205, on average
How this generation is typically defined: People born from 1981 through 1996
Being a little older than their Gen Z counterparts, millennials have spent a greater amount of time in the workforce. That means they likely have more realistic expectations about how much money it takes to be a success.
Millennials recently have enjoyed increasing levels of personal success, as we reported in “Millennials Are Suddenly Loaded: Here’s How They Did It.”
Generation X
Annual salary that respondents in this generation said it takes to be financially successful: $212,321, on average
Net worth that they said it takes to be financially successful: $5,295,072, on average
How this generation is typically defined: People born from 1965 through 1980
Members of Generation X are in their prime earning years. That is likely why they say an annual salary that crosses the $200,000 mark is a requirement for financial success.
However, people in this age group are struggling to a surprising degree, as we explained in “This Generation Is in Deep Despair About Retirement — and Running Out of Time.”
Baby boomers
Annual salary that respondents in this generation said it takes to be financially successful: $99,874, on average
Net worth that they said it takes to be financially successful: $1,049,172, on average
How this generation is typically defined: People born from 1946 through 1964
In the 1960s, baby boomers were the dynamic young generation that was poised to shake the world. Today, they have lived long enough to have expectations that are more deeply grounded in reality.
Of all the generations, boomers have by far the most modest take on what constitutes financial success.
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