More than 440,000 people in the United States crossed the million-dollar threshold in 2025, propelled by a surging stock market, according to a new report from Swiss bank UBS. That works out to roughly 1,200 new millionaires every day, accounting for nearly half of the global increase last year.
The U.S. now hosts 23.6 million individuals with net assets of at least $1 million—more than the combined total of the next nine countries on the list. Mainland China ranks second with 5.3 million millionaires, followed by Japan (2.9 million), Germany (2.6 million), and the United Kingdom (2.4 million). France also has 2.4 million, while Australia (1.6 million), South Korea and the Netherlands (1.3 million each), and Italy (1.2 million) round out the top ten.
Wealth gains mask a stark divide
But the headline numbers obscure a troubling trend. Since 2020, average wealth per adult in the U.S. has risen nearly 10 percent, yet median wealth has fallen almost 20 percent after adjusting for inflation, UBS found. That divergence illustrates how rising asset values can mint hundreds of thousands of millionaires without improving the financial standing of the typical American.
“While global wealth is likely to continue growing, outcomes will increasingly depend on access to investable assets and the ability to diversify, shaping how widely future gains will be shared,” the bank warned.
Financial assets—stocks and bonds—now make up nearly 79 percent of gross wealth in the U.S., among the highest shares of any country measured. Even after including property values, the reliance on market-linked holdings leaves many households vulnerable to downturns.
Global comparisons and concentration
Nearly 90 percent of millionaires across the 56 countries studied have net worths of $5 million or less. Yet the U.S. dominates at higher wealth levels, holding nearly 60 percent of adults with $5 million to $100 million in assets.
A striking contrast: Switzerland, with fewer than 10 million people, has roughly the same number of millionaires as India, which has a population of about 1.5 billion. Both count around 944,000. Luxembourg and Switzerland boast the highest density, with more than one in eight adults worth at least $1 million.
UBS defines wealth as the value of financial assets and real assets—primarily housing—minus debts.
Average versus median wealth
Switzerland leads in average wealth per adult at $910,382, followed by the U.S. ($696,277) and Luxembourg ($654,732). By median wealth—the figure that reflects the typical person—Luxembourg tops the list at $394,005, with Belgium ($277,166) and Australia ($210,783) next. The U.S. ranks 28th, with a median of just under $69,000.
Despite global personal wealth rising more than 10 percent in 2025, UBS said median wealth declined in most markets, highlighting “a growing divide between the wealthiest and the broader population.” That gap is likely to fuel political debates over tax policy and economic fairness, especially as the housing crisis forces a record 25 million young adults to live with their parents.
The report also arrives as 4 million Americans exit ACA plans after subsidies expire, underscoring the fragility of middle-class financial security. For policymakers, the data raises urgent questions about how to broaden access to wealth-building tools beyond the stock market rally that has disproportionately benefited the already affluent.
