What the official data says at 30
The most reliable picture of British wealth comes from the ONS Wealth and Assets Survey (April 2020 to March 2022 round). For households whose head is aged 25 to 34 — the band that covers age 30 — the median household net worth is £109,800. That is below the median for all GB households (£293,700) and 22% of the peak-age band, 65 to 74, at £502,500.
Two caveats before you compare yourself. These are household figures — couples pool assets, so a single person should expect a lower number. And the ONS has suspended accreditation of this survey from the 2020–22 round while it works on response-rate quality, so treat the figures as the best available official estimate rather than gospel.
| Age of household head | Median household net worth |
|---|---|
| 16 to 24 | £15,200 |
| 25 to 34 | £109,800 |
| 35 to 44 | £209,600 |
| 45 to 54 | £301,900 |
| 55 to 64 | £496,500 |
| 65 to 74 | £502,500 |
Source: ONS Wealth and Assets Survey, April 2020 to March 2022. Median across all GB households: £293,700.
The deposit decade: net worth at 30
Thirty sits in the middle of the ONS 25 to 34 band, so the £109,800 median is a fair yardstick — though remember it measures the whole household, so couples effectively pool two sets of savings and pensions to hit it. For most people this is the deposit decade: the single biggest net-worth event in your thirties is usually buying a first home, which converts rent (pure outgoing) into equity (an asset).
A Lifetime ISA adds a 25% government bonus on up to £4,000 a year towards a first home, and a couple can double that. On the pension side, someone on the UK median salary of about £35,000 takes home £28,720 a year in 2025/26 (thresholds frozen to 2028), and every £100 sacrificed into a pension only costs about £72 of that take-home at a 28% marginal rate (20% tax plus 8% NI) — the rest is tax the government never collects.
Median vs mean: why "average" is slippery
Every figure on this page is a median — the middle household if you line everyone up. The ONS uses the median as its headline measure precisely because wealth is so heavily right-skewed: a small number of very wealthy households drag the mean far above the median, so mean ("average") figures quoted in the press can be double the median or more. The ONS publishes mean estimates in its downloadable datasets, but if you want to know what the typical household at 30 has, the median is the honest number.
What counts as net worth
The ONS definition is total household wealth minus debts, built from four components: net property wealth (your home's value minus the mortgage — 40% of all GB household wealth), private pension wealth (35%), net financial wealth (savings and investments minus loans and card debt — 14%) and physical wealth (cars, contents and other possessions — 10%). Note how dominant pensions and property are: most British wealth is not money you can spend this month.
Growing your net worth at 30
Levers with the biggest effect at 30: buy rather than rent where the sums work, keep pension contributions rising with every pay rise (you never miss money you never saw), and clear expensive debt before investing. Check how your pay compares at our average salary at 30 page — net worth follows income with a lag.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average net worth at 30 in the UK?
The ONS Wealth and Assets Survey (April 2020 to March 2022) puts median household net worth at £109,800 for households whose head is aged 25 to 34 — the band covering age 30. The median across all GB households is £293,700. These are household figures, not per person, and include pensions and property.
Does net worth include pensions and property?
Yes. The ONS measure counts net property wealth (40% of GB household wealth), private pension wealth (35%), net financial wealth (14%) and physical wealth (10%), minus debts such as mortgages and loans.
Why is the mean net worth higher than the median?
Wealth is heavily right-skewed: a small number of very wealthy households pull the mean far above the median. The ONS uses the median as its headline measure because it describes the typical household; 'average' figures quoted elsewhere are often means and look much larger.
How much should I have saved by 30?
There is no official target, but the ONS 25 to 34 median of £109,800 per household is a reasonable benchmark for a couple by the early thirties. A common rule of thumb is to aim for roughly one year's salary in pension savings by 30.
Work out the income side of the equation
Salary calculator →