Fed survey finds top 10% of earners' average income fell 14% from 2021 to 2024 while their median wealth rose 31% from 2022 to 2025
The typical family's income rose 7% over the same years, but its net worth rose only 2%, to $215,900, and its median bank-account balance fell 6%, to $8,200.
The Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances (a detailed survey of family money that the Fed runs every three years) shows income and wealth moving in opposite directions for top earners. After inflation, the top 10%'s average income fell from $757,000 to $652,000 between 2021 and 2024, a 14% drop. Over 2022 to 2025, the same group's median net worth climbed 31%. The income figures run 2021 to 2024 and the wealth figures 2022 to 2025, so the two windows are offset by a year.
Which families lost ground in the 2025 survey:
- Families headed by someone under 35: median net worth fell 23%, to $33,000
- Family at the 25th wealth percentile: $27,900, down from $29,600 in 2022 but up from $15,700 in 2019
- Families paying more than 40% of income toward debt: 8.6%, up from 6.5% in 2022 and last this high in 2013