The UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, released on June 30, 2026, revealed that global personal wealth increased by 10.8% in 2025. This rate of growth was the fastest recorded since 2017 and more than doubled the growth rates seen in both 2023 and 2024. The report indicated the creation of nearly 1 million new millionaires worldwide during 2025.

Despite the overall increase in global wealth, median wealth declined in most of the 56 markets tracked by UBS in 2025. The report covers personal wealth across these markets, which collectively represent over 92% of global wealth. The proportion of adults globally holding less than $10,000 in wealth decreased from almost 75% in 2000 to just over 41% by 2026.

The United States ranked second globally in average wealth per adult, with an average of $696,277. However, the U.S. ranked 28th in median wealth per adult, at $68,998. Switzerland held the top position for average wealth per adult. The U.S. also recorded a Gini coefficient of 0.77, indicating its position as having the sixth-worst Gini coefficient globally, behind countries such as the UAE, Russia, South Africa, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia.

The collective wealth of individuals with between $5 million and $100 million has compounded at an average annual real rate of 8.7% since 2000. This rate is more than double the 4% annual rate experienced by individuals considered everyday millionaires during the same period. In mainland China, the wealth of the $50 million to $100 million cohort compounded at an annual rate of nearly 31% since 2000.

Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS, commented on wealth concentration. "There is a concentration of equity wealth into the very highest wealth and income cohorts, which means that periods of strong equity performance (as just witnessed) will widen the gap between the two," Donovan said. He added, "Rising house price to income ratios have prevented younger people from participating in housing as early as they would wish."

In 2009, studies by economists at Columbia University and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that the poorest Americans were near the 70th percentile of global income distribution. The World Data Lab reported in 2025 that the global consumer class now holds a dominant position worldwide. The Brookings Institution projects that the global middle class will reach 5.3 billion people by 2030, with two-thirds of this growth expected in Asia.