To calculate your net worth, list everything you own at what it would realistically sell for, list everything you owe at today's payoff balance, and subtract the second total from the first. The work is in valuing three items honestly: your home, your car and any pre-tax retirement account. The Federal Reserve's newest Survey of Consumer Finances puts the median US family at about $216,000, a useful yardstick.
Key takeaways
- Use resale values for assets and payoff balances for debts, not purchase prices or monthly payments.
- In the illustrative household below, three valuation choices lower the headline figure from $233,000 to $189,080, a drop of $43,920 (about 19%).
- In the 2025 Fed survey, the mean family net worth (about $1.2 million) is roughly 5.7 times the median (about $216,000); compare yourself with the median.
- If you carry a card balance at the 22.36% average rate, paying it off saves far more than the 0.38% national average savings rate would earn on the same cash.
- Depreciation lowers net worth whether you borrow or pay cash; a long car loan adds interest and can leave you owing more than the car is worth ($2,136 more after three years in the example).
How to calculate your net worth
The Fed defines net worth as the difference between a family's assets and liabilities. Assets include financial items (bank accounts, CDs, bonds, stocks, funds, retirement accounts, cash-value life insurance) and nonfinancial items (vehicles, real estate, business equity). Liabilities include mortgages, credit lines, student and auto loans, and credit card balances.
Net worth = total assets - total liabilities
With a statement for every account in front of you:
- Pick one date, such as the last day of a month, for every balance.
- List checking, savings, CDs and brokerage accounts at their current value.
- List retirement accounts at the statement balance, plus the tax-adjusted line described later if you want one.
- Value the home and each vehicle at a realistic selling price, not the price you paid.
- List every debt at the payoff balance: mortgage, auto and student loans, credit cards, personal loans, medical payment plans and money owed to family.
- Subtract, and record the date and the result so the next calculation can show a trend.
Leave out money you do not control today, such as an expected inheritance, unvested equity awards or an unpaid bonus. Many people also leave off household goods, which rarely resell near their cost; if you include valuables such as jewelry, use a realistic resale price.
A worked household example
Illustrative example. A hypothetical household's balance sheet; the "counted value" column applies the valuation choices explained in the next section.
| Line | Face value | Counted value | Basis for the counted value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Checking and savings | $18,000 | $18,000 | Statement balance |
| Home | $380,000 | $357,200 | Price minus assumed 6% selling costs ($22,800) |
| Car | $14,500 | $14,500 | Private-party value, not trade-in or dealer price |
| 401(k), traditional (pre-tax) | $96,000 | $96,000 | Statement balance; tax adjustment shown separately |
| Roth IRA | $14,000 | $14,000 | Statement balance |
| Brokerage account | $6,500 | $6,500 | Market value on the chosen date |
| Total assets | $529,000 | $506,200 | |
| Mortgage | $262,000 | $262,000 | Payoff balance |
| Auto loan | $9,800 | $9,800 | Payoff balance |
| Student loan | $18,000 | $18,000 | Payoff balance |
| Credit card | $6,200 | $6,200 | Statement balance |
| Total liabilities | $296,000 | $296,000 | |
| Net worth | $233,000 | $210,200 | Total assets minus total liabilities |
Face values give $233,000. Counting the home net of selling costs lowers it by $22,800 to $210,200. If the household also assumes a 22% tax rate on the traditional 401(k), the estimated tax is $21,120 (22% x $96,000) and the tax-adjusted figure is $189,080. The 6% and 22% are assumptions, not rules.
Valuation choices that change it
Home: market value minus selling costs
A home counts at roughly what it would net you, so subtract selling costs such as agent commissions and closing costs from a price based on recent sales of similar nearby homes. Those costs vary by market and deal; 6% is a placeholder. Use the mortgage payoff balance, which can be slightly above the statement balance because of interest accrued since the last payment.
Car: private-party value
A vehicle counts at what a private buyer would pay for that year, model, mileage and condition. Dealer trade-in offers are usually lower and dealer asking prices higher, so private-party value sits between them. Recheck it at each update; it falls even when loan payments are on time.
Retirement accounts: the pre-tax caveat
Money in a traditional IRA or traditional 401(k) has not been taxed yet. The IRS says amounts in a traditional IRA are not taxed until you take a distribution, so the balance you see is larger than what you would keep. Withdrawals before age 59½ also generally carry a 10% additional tax on the taxable part unless an exception applies; the exceptions differ for IRAs and for workplace plans such as a 401(k). The tax you would owe depends on your income in the year you withdraw, so record the full balance and keep a second, tax-adjusted line beside it. This example treats the Roth IRA at its statement balance; Roth withdrawals follow their own IRS conditions.
Net worth by age in the 2025 survey
The Fed's Survey of Consumer Finances runs every three years. Its 2025 results, released October 9, 2026, report median net worth up 2% since 2022 after inflation, and mean net worth up 7%. The age breakdown below comes from the Fed's historical tables (Table 4); every amount is in 2025 dollars, so the 2022 column is restated to match. Age is that of the family's "reference person," the Fed's term for the person used to classify the household.
| Age of reference person | 2022 median | 2025 median | 2025 mean |
|---|---|---|---|
| All families | $210,900 | $216,100 | $1,232,000 |
| Under 35 | $42,700 | $32,800 | $135,700 |
| 35-44 | $148,100 | $156,000 | $669,300 |
| 45-54 | $270,000 | $254,700 | $1,243,600 |
| 55-64 | $398,600 | $411,300 | $1,871,000 |
| 65-74 | $448,700 | $431,900 | $1,870,900 |
| 75 and older | $366,300 | $504,600 | $1,949,700 |
Three points matter. First, the mean is $1,232,000 against a median of $216,100, a ratio of about 5.7, because a few very wealthy families pull the mean up; compare with the median. Second, the median moves a lot between surveys for some ages (under 35 fell about 23% in real terms; 75 and older rose about 38%), so treat an age row as a rough range, not a target. Third, the spreadsheet's overall figures differ slightly from the Fed's release, which states the median as $215,900 and the mean as $1.24 million; the gap changes no conclusion here.
Why net worth says more than pay
Income is what comes in during a period; net worth is what remains after years of earning, spending, borrowing and investing. In a hypothetical comparison, Household A earns $150,000, spends all of it and has $5,000 of savings against $20,000 of card debt: net worth -$15,000. Household B earns $70,000 and has $120,000 of assets against $30,000 of debt: net worth $90,000. B has less than half of A's income and $105,000 more net worth.
The Fed data show the same spread. In the 2025 tables, families in the middle income band (40th to 59.9th percentile) had a median net worth of about $203,100 but a mean of about $462,300, so families with similar pay hold very different amounts. Median net worth was about $459,000 for homeowners and about $10,550 for renters and others, a gap that also reflects age and income.
Ways to grow it, with numbers
Pay off high-interest debt first
The Federal Reserve's G.19 consumer credit release of November 6, 2026 reports an average commercial-bank credit card rate of 22.36% on accounts assessed interest (21.19% across all accounts; third quarter of 2026, preliminary). The FDIC's national average savings rate was 0.38% as of October 19, 2026. Some banks pay more, but none at a card-like rate. This matters only for a balance you carry: a card paid in full each month within its grace period usually charges no interest.
Illustrative example. Paying the household's $6,200 card from savings does not change net worth on the day you do it, because assets and debts both fall by $6,200. If the $6,200 stayed on the card for a year at 22.36%, with interest compounding monthly, interest would be about $1,538 (6,200 x ((1 + 0.2236/12)^12 - 1)); the same cash in savings at 0.38% would earn about $24. Paying it off leaves net worth about $1,514 higher after a year. Paying $400 a month instead clears it in 19 months with $1,185 of interest. Keep a cash cushion, since new emergencies would otherwise go back on the card.
Raise the savings rate
Net worth changes through saving, debt repayment and changes in asset prices; the first two are the ones you control most directly. Illustrative example: on an $85,000 income, saving 5%, 10% or 15% of it for ten years, deposited at the end of each month with an assumed 5% annual return compounded monthly, ends as follows.
| Saving rate | Per year | Total contributed (10 years) | Value after 10 years at 5% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5% | $4,250 | $42,500 | $54,996 |
| 10% | $8,500 | $85,000 | $109,992 |
| 15% | $12,750 | $127,500 | $164,987 |
The result scales in line with the rate saved. The 5% return is an assumption, not a forecast; real returns vary and can be negative in a given year.
Keep car debt below the car's value
A car loses value whether you pay cash or borrow; a loan adds interest and can leave you owing more than the car is worth. Illustrative example: a $40,000 car financed over 72 months at 7.17% (the 72-month new-car rate in the same G.19 release) has a payment of $685.23. After 36 payments the owner has paid $24,668, of which $6,805 was interest, and still owes $22,136. If the car is then worth $20,000 (an assumption), the car and loan together count as -$2,136 in net worth. Against the day before the purchase, the owner is $26,805 worse off: $20,000 of depreciation, which a cash buyer would also lose, plus $6,805 of interest. A 60-month loan at the release's 7.54% rate costs $802.28 a month, but after 36 payments it leaves $2,179 of equity ($17,821 owed), and total interest is $8,137 instead of $9,337.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I recalculate my net worth?
No official standard exists. Every three to six months shows a trend without reacting to short market swings. Keep the same valuation rules and account list each time so changes reflect real progress.
Is a negative net worth a problem?
Near-zero or negative net worth is not unusual, particularly with student loans and a car loan. In the Fed's 2025 tables, the bottom quarter of families by net worth had a median of about $1,700 and a mean of about -$3,900, which means some families in that group owe much more than they own. The trend matters more than the sign: a negative figure that rises each year is progress.
Should I count a retirement account I cannot touch yet?
Yes, but note the limits. Before age 59½, taxable withdrawals generally carry an extra 10% tax unless an exception applies. IRA exceptions include certain medical costs and a lifetime $10,000 toward a first home; that home exception does not apply to a 401(k), but leaving your employer in or after the year you turn 55 can exempt withdrawals from that employer's plan. A second, tax-adjusted line keeps the figure honest.
Are the Federal Reserve's figures adjusted for inflation?
The historical tables used here are in 2025 dollars, so 2022 and 2025 compare directly. The 2023 report on the 2022 survey used 2022 dollars, so its median looks lower at $192,900. Always check a figure's dollar year.
How much can I put into retirement accounts in 2026?
The IRS limit is $24,500 for employee deferrals to a 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 or Thrift Savings Plan, and $7,500 for IRA contributions. At 50 and older the catch-up amounts are $8,000 for those plans and $1,100 for IRAs; workers aged 60 to 63 get a higher plan catch-up of $11,250. IRA deductibility depends on income and other conditions, and an employer plan may set its own rules.
A quarterly net worth routine
- Choose a date and copy every account balance into one list.
- Apply the same valuation rules: home minus selling costs, car at private-party value, retirement accounts at face value plus a separate tax-adjusted line.
- Record the result, the date and the change since last time.
- Compare with your age group's median in the table above.
- Pick one action for the next quarter: clear the highest-rate balance, raise the saving rate by 1 percentage point, or keep any new car loan short enough that it stays below the car's value.
This article is general education, not personal financial or tax advice. A tax professional can apply the retirement-account rules to your situation.
Sources
- Federal Reserve Board, press release on the 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances (October 9, 2026)
- Federal Reserve Board, SCF 2025 historical tables in 2025 dollars (Table 4)
- Federal Reserve Bulletin, Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2019 to 2022 (October 2023)
- Federal Reserve Board, G.19 Consumer Credit (released November 6, 2026)
- FDIC, National Rates and Rate Caps
- IRS, Traditional IRAs
- IRS, Topic no. 557, Additional tax on early distributions
- IRS, Topic no. 558, Additional tax on early distributions from retirement plans other than IRAs
- IRS, Retirement topics: Exceptions to tax on early distributions
- IRS, 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026; IRA limit increases to $7,500
