Average Americans feel they need to earn a big six-figure salary to make ends meet, survey reveals
Americans feel they need to earn more than $186,000 to live comfortably
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A majority of Americans feel they need to earn over $186K per year to "live comfortably" in today's economy, according to the latest installment of Bankrate's annual Financial Freedom Survey.
The personal finance site arrived at the whopping six-figure number after surveying 2,400 Americans to gauge their estimates of what it would take to feel financially secure.
To pile on top of that lofty salary number, many Americans – particularly Baby Boomers, those currently making under $50K and parents with adult children – believe they will never meet that mark or that it's unlikely.
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Americans believe they need a larger amount of money to live comfortably than before. (iStock / iStock)
"Just 6% of the Americans who have an idea of what they’d need to earn to feel secure say they are already earning that annual income," the survey findings, released Monday, read in part.
"About 2 in 5 (37%) say it’s likely that they’ll one day earn that income, while 31% indicate it’s unlikely and 18% think their income will never get to that level in their lifetime."
Bankrate additionally noted that the $186K number, despite being 20% lower than last year's, is still more than two times the average salary for full-time workers, which was listed at approximately $79K, according to Census Bureau data.
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The number of Americans who feel financially secure fell by three percent since 2023. (iStock / iStock)
Though $186K was the average estimate needed to live comfortably each year, responses varied, with some going higher.
"A quarter of Americans (25%) believe they would need to earn $150,000 or more to feel financially secure, while 7% feel they would need to earn $500,000 or more," Bankrate's findings said, adding that another 4% listed $1 million or more instead.
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Forty-six percent contrarily said they didn't need a six-figure salary to be content.
What does it take to be considered rich these days? Over $500K annually, the findings show.
Furthermore, the percentage of Americans who currently feel "completely financially secure" also took a three percent dip from 28% to 25%, while the 72% who felt they were "not completely financially secure" last year climbed to 75% this year.
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