This statistic shows a comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 for two age groups: young families, where the householder is younger than 35, and mostly retired households, where the householder is 65 or older. The median net worth of young households has decreased from 11,521 U.S. dollars in 1984 to 3,662 U.S. dollars in 2009.
Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder
(in 2010 U.S. dollars)
Characteristic
1984
2009
Younger than 35
11,521$
3,662$
65 and older
120,457$
170,494$
0$50,000$100,000$150,000$200,000$
Add this content to your personal favorites. These can be accessed from the favorites menu in the main navigation.
You have no right to use this feature.
Make sure to contact us if you are interested in scientific citation.
You can upgrade your account to enable this functionality for all statistics.
This feature is not available with your current account.Request access
Median denotes the midpoint of a group—in this case the point at which 50% of the households have more wealth and 50% have less. Unlike averages, medians are not sensitive to extreme values of wealth. The median describes the experience of those “in the middle of the pack.”
Net worth: Assets minus debt.
Citation formats
Veera Korhonen
Research expert covering United States data for society
Statista has been my savior on several occasions.
The site is easy to maneuver and the data is in a format that can
go right into a report or presentation.
Learn more about how Statista can support your business.
Pew Research Center. (November 7, 2011). Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder (in 2010 U.S. dollars) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved April 23, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/
Pew Research Center. "Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder (in 2010 U.S. dollars)." Chart. November 7, 2011. Statista. Accessed April 23, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/
Pew Research Center. (2011). Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder (in 2010 U.S. dollars). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: April 23, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/
Pew Research Center. "Comparison of The Median Net worth of U.S. Households in 1984 and 2009 by Age of Householder (in 2010 U.S. Dollars)." Statista, Statista Inc., 7 Nov 2011, https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/
Pew Research Center, Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder (in 2010 U.S. dollars) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/ (last visited April 23, 2025)
Comparison of the median net worth of U.S. households in 1984 and 2009 by age of householder (in 2010 U.S. dollars) [Graph], Pew Research Center, November 7, 2011. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/206431/median-net-worth-by-age-of-householder-in-the-us-in-1984-and-2009/
Profit from additional features with an Employee Account
Please create an employee account to be able to mark statistics as favorites.
Then you can access your favorite statistics via the star in the header.
Profit from the additional features of your individual account
Currently, you are using a shared account. To use individual functions (e.g., mark statistics as favourites, set
statistic alerts) please log in with your personal account.
If you are an admin, please authenticate by logging in again.
