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How much does the average American make in a lifetime?
In this article, we’re covering:
Let’s dig in.
The average American will make $1.7M in lifetime earnings.
The average person works 45 years in their life.
It’s estimated that the average person works 90,000 hours in their lifetime.
This comes out to be 45 years if we take the normal 2,000 hours a year that we work.
The average American makes $54,132 per year.
There are a lot of variables that go into how much the average person makes in a lifetime.
They won’t make $54,132 for all 45 years of their career.
The average American’s annual income increases with education levels and experience.
The average American net worth is $748,000.
Remember that the average American makes $1.7M in their lifetime.
This means that the average American net worth is 44% of their lifetime earnings.
On average, home equity is $498,168, or 66.7%, of the average American’s net worth.
That means that the average American only saves up $249,800.
This is only 15% of what the average American makes in a lifetime.
Your lifetime earnings will increase with each education level that you complete.
As long as you are getting a degree in a field that has demand.
The lifetime earnings by education level are:
| Degree Level | Average Lifetime Earnings |
|---|---|
| High School Diploma | $1,304,000 |
| Some College | $1,547,000 |
| Associate’s Degree | $1,727,000 |
| Bachelor’s Degree | $2,268,000 |
| Master’s Degree | $2,671,000 |
| Doctoral Degree | $3,252,000 |
| Professional Degree | $3,648,000 |
The average lifetime earnings are $1.7M per year.
Average income fluctuates with the level of education, demographics, and gender.
The average person makes $54,132 per year.
But, that takes into account the average salary by degree level.
85% of Americans have a college degree per the Census Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Related: How Many People Make Over $100k
The average salary by degree level is:
| Degree Level | Average Salary |
|---|---|
| High School Diploma | $32,600 |
| Some College | $38,675 |
| Associate’s Degree | $43,175 |
| Bachelor’s Degree | $56,700 |
| Master’s Degree | $66,775 |
| Doctoral Degree | $81,300 |
| Professional Degree | $91,200 |
It’s clear that educational attainment is important to increase lifetime earnings.
And, the higher degree level you attain, the:
Professional degrees are things like doctors and lawyers.
These professions are some of the highest-paying jobs and have the highest lifetime earnings.
This doesn’t mean you should be diving headfirst into getting your next degree.
You need to weigh some things out like:
For example, let’s assume you’re getting a law degree in New York.
You may be earning $165,000 per year ($125,000 after income taxes).
But the cost of living in New York could have you living paycheck to paycheck.
Real estate is atrocious in comparison to the average household income.
Making student loan payments could eliminate your extra income.
This can help us understand how much the average American makes in a lifetime.
The average person:
But how much the average American makes in a lifetime depends on their education level.
Those with bachelor’s degrees earn an average of 174% more than high school diplomas.
So, let’s look at how many people have a college degree.
Related: What Percentage Of American Households Make Over 300k?
The percentage of Americans with a college degree is as follows:
| Degree Level | Percentage Of Americans With A College Degree |
|---|---|
| High School Diploma | 55.4% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 15.8% |
| Master's Degree | 7.2% |
| Professional Degree | 1.4% |
| Doctorate Degree | 1.0% |
Let’s break this down into how many Americans have a college degree.
| Degree Level | How Many Americans Have A College Degree? |
|---|---|
| High School Diploma | 99.6M |
| Bachelor's Degree | 52.8M |
| Master's Degree | 24.1M |
| Professional Degree | 4.7M |
| Doctorate Degree | 3.4M |
The average salary for women is 81% of what their male counterpart earners make (BLS).
This is known as the gender gap in what the average person makes in a lifetime.
Let’s say that the median income for a male is $54,132.
In this case, the median earnings for a woman are 81% of this.
Because of the gender gap, women earn an average of $43,846.
Women make up for a lower average wage by having higher education levels.
53.1% of bachelor degrees are women and 46.9% are men.
Granted, that does not solve the gender pay gap.
But it does increase women’s median salary for a full-time annual wage.
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