Australia’s wealth gap widens as asset growth concentrates at the top

11 May 2026

New modelling of household wealth data by KPMG Australia shows that the gap between Australia’s wealthiest households and everyone else has widened over the past five years.

Between 2019-20 and 2024-25, average household wealth surged from $1.26 million to $1.56 million, an increase of almost 23.6% in real terms in five years. However, over the same period, median household wealth was basically unchanged at $700,000.

Prior to the pandemic, growth in wealth was relatively even across all households. Between 2014-15 and 2019-20, median wealth rose by around 11%, from $633,000 to $701,000, and average wealth increased by just over 10%, from $1,14 million to $1.26 million.

KPMG Urban Economist, Terry Rawnsley explains that asset price growth during the pandemic is behind the acceleration of the wealth divide.

“During the pandemic interest rates sat at near zero which fuelled a sharp increase in asset values, particularly property. Households that already had property or were able to get on the ladder during that time are now reaping the rewards and seeing their wealth grow much faster than those that missed out.”

“The last five years didn’t just boost wealth, it reshaped who benefits from it,” added Mr Rawnsley. “Asset owners surged ahead, while households without property or investments were largely left standing still, despite superannuation helping the poorest households.”

Wealth summary statistics 2024-25 dollars (adjusted for inflation)

^{Source: KPMG analysis of ABS Household Income and Wealth, Australia (2019–20), National Accounts: Distribution of Household Income, Consumption, and Wealth publication, Labour Force Status of Families. Note: 2024-25 estimates based on scope of wealth within Household Income and Wealth, Australia (2019–20). Note: In 2024–25 dollars, adjusted using changes in the Consumer Price Index * 2024-25 is an estimate and subject to revision.}

The shrinking middle

Households with net wealth between $300,000 and $900,000, traditionally seen as the “average” Australian household, are now in decline.

Once accounting for more than one third of all households in 2014-15, this group now represents less than 28% of households. Household numbers in this bracket are now falling outright, with annual negative growth of -0.5% over the past five years.

These households are typically homeowners with mortgages, superannuation, and modest additional assets. However, rising property prices have pushed many out of this category altogether.

“What we’re seeing is a redefinition of what people have traditionally understood as ‘average’ wealth,” said Mr Rawnsley.

“For those who already owned property, rising prices have pushed them up the wealth ladder but for those trying to buy in, things are much tougher.”

Falling home ownership rates also means fewer new households are entering this group, compounding the decline.

“This middle-wealth bracket was traditionally topped up with a steady stream of first home buyers who would slowly accumulate wealth as they built equity in their home.”

“With the rate of homeownership falling amongst young people, this cohort is now shrinking.”

Wealth bracket net worth $300,000 - $900,000

Asset boom supercharges upper wealth brackets

In contrast, households with net wealth between $900,000 and $1.6 million are growing strongly, at 3.4% per year, well above overall household growth rate of 2.1%.

This cohort now accounts for nearly one in five households, up from 17% a decade ago. These households are typically homeowners with lower mortgage balances, substantial superannuation, and other investments.

“Households in this bracket have got enough equity in their home to benefit from the big asset prices rises that occurred over the past five years,” Rawnsley said.

“The compounding effect of property and superannuation really shows up in this group and with mortgage debt largely under control, wealth accumulation continues to accelerate very quickly.”

Wealth bracket net worth $900,000 – $1,600,000

Top wealth households pulling away

At the very top, households with net wealth of $1.6 million and above now make up 22% of all households, up from just 15% a decade ago. This group is expanding at around three times the overall household growth rate, driven by strong gains in property and share markets, alongside rapid debt reduction.

“This is typically the cohort that has already paid off their home and benefited enormously from recent house price growth,” said Rawnsley. “For these households, wealth hasn’t just grown, it’s multiplied into the millions.”

Wealth bracket net worth $1,600,000+

Fewer low wealth households

Around one third of all households sit in the lowest wealth bracket, with net worth below $300,000. This group includes pensioners without home ownership, JobSeeker households, and younger Australians yet to accumulate significant assets.

The share of households in this bracket has fallen from 34% to 31% over the past decade, and over the past five years, the total number of low wealth households has grown by just 0.7% a year which is well below the 2.1% growth rate for all households.

Part of the slowdown reflects demographic change, with older, lower‑wealth households passing away and being replaced by a generally wealthier baby boomer cohort.

“This is the part of the population that has missed out on the asset boom,” said Mr Rawnsley. “Without housing or investment assets, wealth for these households has been largely stagnant.”

Wealth bracket net worth less than $300,000

Wealth inequality speeding up not slowing down

The data points to a growing concentration of wealth and a more uneven economic landscape.

“The cohort most people would previously identify as ‘average’ is collapsing as the majority of wealth continues to funnel up towards property owners and those with sizable asset portfolios,” Mr Rawnsley said.

“We are at risk of becoming a country where the wealth of your parents is becoming a more significant factor in someone’s ability to generate wealth.”  

Method 

Wealth Distribution

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Household Income and Wealth, Australia (2019-20) publication provides data on mean and median household wealth, as well as household counts across the wealth distribution. Using this data, together with estimates of average household wealth for all households in 2024-25 and average wealth by wealth quartile, asynthetic household wealth distribution for 2024-25 was constructed.

The synthetic distribution is calibrated to match the published averages and is consistent with historical trends observed in the ABS data.

All estimates in 2024-25 dollars, adjusted using changes in the Consumer Price Index.

Estimates of Average Household Wealth for 2024-25

The KPMG analysis is based on the ABS National Accounts: Distribution of Household Income, Consumption, and Wealth publication, which provides asset‑type data for the years 2003-04 to 2021-22. Trends in this data, population growth by age group, and the 2024-25 household balance sheet have been used to estimate average household wealth and average wealth by quartile.

Technical Notes

It should be noted that the National Accounts: Distribution of Household Income, Consumption, and Wealth and Household Income and Wealth, Australia publications differ in their scope of household wealth. These differences were accounted for in the construction of the synthetic household wealth distribution for 2024-25.

Household counts from Household Income and Wealth (2019-20), Australia also vary slightly from the ABS Labour Force Status of Families estimates due to differences in collection periods (point‑in‑time versus annual averages). As a result, estimates for the June month / 30 June household counts differ by approximately 1%. This difference was accounted for when estimating the number of households in 2024-25.

Household counts in the synthetic wealth distribution align with historical household counts published in both the National Accounts: Distribution of Household Income, Consumption, and Wealth and Household Income and Wealth, Australia (2019-20) datasets.

The 2019–20 household wealth distribution is drawn directly from Household Income and Wealth, Australia. The 2014-15 distribution is estimated as the average of the 2013-14 and 2015-16 distributions, as no data was collected in 2014-15.

In 2024-25 dollars, adjusted using changes in the Consumer Price Index.