Salaries don’t hit our high ideals

Australians need an annual salary of nearly $350,000 a year to “feel rich”, new research finds, with the aspirational salary multiple times the pay of the average Aussie.

A Finder survey of 1032 respondents found the average Australian said feeling rich required an annual pay of $345,819, with that eye-watering figure nearly five times the average income of $72,753, as reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Millennials (people born between 1981-1996) had the highest expectations, placing that figure at $418,325, followed by Gen Z (people born between 1997-2012) at $392.077.

On the other end of the spectrum, Baby Boomers (people born between 1955-1964) said making $273,812 meant you were rich, while Gen X (people born between 1965-1980) said that figure was $307,257.

Finder money expert Rebecca Pike said the rising cost of living had also increased people’s expectations of how much they needed to consider themselves wealthy.

“Remember, only a small percentage of the population earns anywhere near $346k – the typical Aussie is on a salary closer to $70,000,” she said.

“That said, it’s been an incredibly tough couple of years for many, with household budgets pushed to the limit.

“With everything from soaring property prices to expensive energy bills, the average person now feels they need to earn a whole lot more to be wealthy.”

For people looking to prioritise saving money as a New Year’s resolution, Ms Pike said it was important to “take stock of where your money is going”.

“Cut spending on anything you aren’t using or no longer need, and don’t pay too much for what you do need,” she said.

Despite high expectations as to what counts as rich in 2024, Finder research on saving accounts found that nearly one in two Australians (46 per cent) said they could only survive off their savings for a month or less, with the average Aussie accruing a buffer of $37,975.

Men have an average $52,655 in savings, nearly $30,000 more than women.