Everyday Wealth in America

The 2024 Report

For the third year in a row, Edelman Financial Engines explores the intersection of life and money, revealing new insights into Americans’ attitudes on a wide range of wealth-related topics—and how they effect our financial and emotional well-being.

Perception of Wealth

Am I wealthy?

12 % believe they are wealthy, a consistent figure the last 3 years

How much do Americans need to feel wealthy?

65% say

$1M+

28% say

$2M+

This is what’s keeping people up at night

Top 3 concerns for Americans

86%

Current political environmentUp from 80% in 2023

86%

InflationUp from 84% in 2023

82%

Global conflicts and crisisUp from 77% in 2023

Obstacles to building wealth

Debt is a threat:
Credit card woes inhibit wealth creation

44%

say credit card debt is the biggest barrier to building wealth

49%

carry a debt on their cards each month

40%

owe $10,000 or more

A different Vision

This is not your grandparents’ retirement

37 % want a retirement that looks different from previous generations

The top 3 types of retirement Americans want

42%

want something more active

39%

want something more adventurous

37%

want to pursue passion projects

1in3

say they will never be able to “fully” retire

The Value of a Professional

Where do I go for help?

74%

say they stress less about money and finances because they work with a financial professional

63%

say they wish they had started with a financial professional sooner

Dive Deeper

Explore additional insights from Everyday Wealth in America 2024.

See the Press Release

Media Contact:

PRTeam@EdelmanFinancialEngines.com

Interested in previous year’s reports?

The 2023 Everyday Wealth in America research was conducted for Edelman Financial Engines by Greenwald Research. Information was gathered through an online survey of 2,022 Americans who were at least 30 years old, from August 28 to September 8, 2023. The total sample included an oversample of 1,013 “affluent” respondents between the ages of 45-70, with household assets between $500K-$3M, and currently working with a financial professional or open to doing so. Data was weighted to correct for the affluent oversample and was also weighted by household assets, age, gender, race, and education to reflect the broader national population. If randomly conducted, the survey would have a margin of error (at the 95% confidence level) of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

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