In 2019-20, a household at the 90th percentile of the distribution – that is, a household that is richer than 90 per cent of households – had a net worth of $2.26 million. A household at the 10th percentile was worth just $36,900, or 61 times less.
Consistent with the findings of our Inequality in Australia 2020 report, wealth is still very unequally distributed in 2021-22. * The highest 10% of households by wealth has an average of $6.1 million or 46% of all wealth.
But the survey also discovered that around one in four (25 per cent) of Aussies wouldn't consider themselves rich unless they were earning at least $500,000 a year. Finder personal finance expert Kate Browne said persistently pining for more money could be a dangerous game.
The average Australian would need to earn a salary of $326,900 per year to feel rich – nearly seven times the median wage, according to research released earlier this year. But one in four Aussies wouldn't consider themselves rich until they raked in a whopping $500,000.
Is $100,000 salary good in Australia? Given that 50% of the population is earning less than $79,800, a salary of $100,000 puts you in the top half.
Not only are individuals on $200,000 very much at the top but even households earning that much are. If we just look at all households in Australia we find that the median annual income in 2017-18 was $88,764: But that doesn't tell us very much about standards of living.
The richest 10 per cent of Aussies have an average net worth of $6.1 million and account for 46 per cent of total wealth. In contrast, the bottom 60 per cent had an average of $376,000 per household, or just 17 per cent of the total. This may be the lucky country, but it appears it's only lucky for some.
So if you're on $100k or more, congratulations, you're in the top 20% of Aussie income earners. If not, don't worry, you're in the good company of 80% of Aussies.
The research found the amount of money you need to be in the top 1% wealthiest people doubled in Australia over the past 2 years, rising from US$2.8m in 2021 to US$5.5m in 2023.
People in the census's very top income bracket, like you, earn at least $156,000 a year — or $3,000 a week — before tax. At census time, there were about 596,531 people in Australia above that income level — or 3.8 per cent of income earners.
Anyone earning $180,000 would definitely be one of the country's highest paid workers. The large majority of workers (about 75 per cent) earn less than $78,624 a year before tax.
Wealth inequality in Australia
People in the highest 20% of the wealth scale hold nearly two thirds of all wealth (64%), while those in the lowest 60% hold less than a fifth of wealth (17%). NOTE: Wealth is adjusted for debt.
According to Credit Suisse's most recent annual Global Wealth Report, 390,000 Australians became millionaires in 2021, bringing the nation's total to 2.18 million.
The average Australian has a net worth of more than AUD $500k. Australia is often ranked in the top-five globally, fuelled by high house prices and mandatory retirement savings. Households managed to add to their wealth during Covid-19, but wealth inequality worsened a little despite welfare handouts.
The highest number of rich-listers live in the 2088 postcode in Sydney - which includes Mosman and Spit Junction - with 19,707 people earning $188,324, on average. In comparison, there were just 559 people in the 3944 Portsea postcode in Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, earning an average of $229,805 per year.
On a mean wealth basis, Australia was the fourth-richest country in 2021 behind Switzerland, the US and Hong Kong. The average Australian adult was worth $US550,110 at the end of last year, after enjoying a $US66,350 annual increase in wealth.
All in all, only two percent of Australia's 14.3 million workers take over $200,000 a year. Only three percent of Australians earn $188,667.
Originally Answered: Is $140k Enough for a Comfortable Life in Melbourne? Considering the fact that the average salary here is around $60,000pa, I would consider $140,000 pa to be more than adequate to maintain a "comfortable life"..
The average American household needs to bring in $652,657 a year to be classed among the top 1% of earners across the country, according to research published Thursday by financial advisors SmartAsset. The report analyzed 2020 IRS data to identify America's highest earners.
Just 3.8 per cent of taxpayers had a taxable income that high in 2019-20. And only 25 per cent had a taxable income higher than $80,000 a year. So a taxpayer with an annual income of $80,000 is in the top quarter of Australian taxpayers.
Only 9,144 of the 14,467 Australians on taxable incomes of more than $1 million worked. Only 17,883 of the 222,813 Australians on more than $250,000 worked.
Only another 14.9 per cent had taxable incomes exceeding $80,000 a year. So a taxpayer with an income of $80,000 a year is therefore in the top 20 per cent of Australians.