• Workers making over $100,000 no longer consider themselves “rolling in it”—more than half of six-figure earners no longer feel financially successful. Those with top salaries are shopping at discount grocery stores, and cutting back on dining, clothes, and travel as they try and make ends meet. They’re even stalling major life plans—like renovating their homes, and throwing their weddings. 

Being a six-figure earner once felt like an exclusive club, with the promise of a lavish life—but now those making over $100,000 are feeling the pinch. So much so that they’re even buying their groceries at dollar stores and ditching takeouts.

More than half (58%) of six-figure earners no longer feel financially successful, according to a recent report from Clarify Capital. 

Six-figure earners aren’t choosing to fly economy over first-class—they’re looking for better deals when it comes to the essentials. More than seven in 10 of these high earners are now being forced to shop at discount grocery chains to save cash. 

Around 74% also say they’re cutting back on dining out, 54% are skimping out on entertainment, 51% are getting thrifty with buying clothes, 49% are scaling back their subscriptions, and 49% are spending less on travel. 

However, they’re not ashamed of their new thrifty ways, with 62% of six-figure earners proudly claiming they aren’t embarrassed to admit they’re cutting back. 

“In today’s economy, income alone doesn’t guarantee financial peace of mind,” the report says. “High earners are feeling squeezed by inflation, stressed by social pressure, and more mindful about what it really means to be well-off.” 

“As spending habits shift and priorities change, one thing is clear: real wealth is about security, not just status.”

The wealthy are cutting back on major life purchases too

Once the epitome of “making it” in America, workers earning six figures are now in the same boat as their less wealthy peers. 

And beyond the day-to-day expenses, those considered to be “rich” are also delaying major life purchases. About 47% are setting back their dream vacations and travel, 31% are stalling on home renovations, and 26% are delaying buying or leasing a new car.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the tough housing market has forced many to rethink their American dream timelines, as 17% are pushing back buying a new home—and 6% of six-figure earners are even delaying getting married. 

Essentially, the rising cost of living crisis has forced people in all tax brackets to watch their spending, causing anxiety. About 85% of six-figure workers say they feel stressed and anxious due to increased living costs—and it’s even worse for women. Around 88% of top-earning women feel worried about keeping their checkbooks balanced, compared to 81% of men. 

The new upper-class: making more than $200,000

It’s no surprise that six-figure earners are pinching pennies when it comes to daily essentials—after all, more than half of Americans making over $100,000 annually lived paycheck to paycheck in 2022, 7% more than the previous year, according to a 2023 report. The cost-of-living crisis has pushed the needle of wealth to a new high.

In some parts of the U.S., making around $200,000 isn’t even considered to be “rolling in it.” A household making $199,000 a year in Massachusetts and New Jersey would still be considered middle-class, according to a 2025 analysis of 2023 U.S. Census Bureau data. And in every single state in America, a $100,000 salary is no longer enough to be considered to be upper-class. 

There are several reasons why more six-figure earners are struggling to make ends meet. Some employees have been hit with wage deflation, and the prospect of switching jobs for better pay has been upended. Employees who stayed in their current roles received a 4.6% wage bump in January and February, while those who switched jobs received only a marginally higher increase of 4.8%, according to 2025 data from the Atlanta Fed. 

Also, inflation has increased living expenses across the board. People may assume a middle-class lifestyle could at least keep up with the basics, but 65% of those households say their incomes were falling behind the cost of living, according to a 2024 study from Primerica.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

© Inside Creative House / Getty Images

• Gen Z can get a one-way ticket to the millionaires’ club sooner than they may think, according to multimillionaire venture capitalist and Shark Tank star Rashaun Williams. It all comes down to three simple steps: establishing an emergency fund, maxing out retirement accounts, and keeping investments simple, he exclusively tells Fortune.

Dreams of a comfortable retirement feel increasingly out of reach for young people—especially as even boomers, who spent decades saving, are now being forced back into the workforce. For Gen Z, it’s easy to feel hopeless and turn to bad financial habits like doom spending as a coping mechanism.

But the possibility of Gen Z retiring as millionaires may not be as complicated as the generation thinks it is. With proper financial planning, Gen Z can easily have seven figures to their name, according to Rashaun Williams, a multimillionaire venture capitalist returning as a guest judge on Shark Tank this upcoming season. 

The secret, he tells Fortune, relies on just following three simple steps: establishing an emergency fund, maxing out retirement accounts, and keeping investments simple.

The ‘Shark Tank’ investor’s 3 steps for Gen Z wanting to become millionaires: 1. Create an emergency fund

The path toward million-dollar wealth can’t begin without planning for the unexpected, such as a job loss or medical emergency. Williams says an emergency fund should start with saving up three months worth of expenses into your savings account.

“Make sure you have enough cash for a rainy day, so you’re not pulling from your 401(k) prematurely,” Williams tells Fortune.

For those who want to be a little extra careful—or are unlucky enough to have  life throw wrenches their way—many financial institutions, like Wells Fargo, suggest that up to six months’ worth of expenses could be worth it.

2. Maxing out your 401(k) and Roth IRA

Saving money using tax-advantaged accounts, like a 401(k) or Roth IRA, remains one of the most efficient ways to grow your wealth. Williams says Gen Z  should try to put as much money within their budgets into retirement accounts.

“If you just do that from 25 to 50 years old, you’re going to retire a millionaire,” Williams says. “…Just by maxing out your 401(k), it grows tax deferred, and it goes in tax-free. There’s no better return than to get your returns without taxes.”

The standard 401(k) limit for employee salary deferrals is about $23,500 in 2025. The maximum amount you can contribute each year to a Roth IRA is $7,000 for those under 50 (though your income must be below a certain adjusted income threshold).

Fidelity recommends individuals save at least 15% of their annual income for retirement—something that can be a tough ask for those Gen Z early in their career. 

But, it’s a number that fellow Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary has echoed: “Take 15% of your salary each week, or every two weeks when you get paid, and put it into an investment account, and never touch it until you turn 65,” O’Leary told Us Weekly in 2023. “That’s how you will retire a multimillionaire.”

In reality, the average savings rate is about 14.1%, according to Fidelity. Taking advantage of any employer match program is also important.

3. Keep investments simple

While there are many ways to invest money—including seemingly fun opportunities like individual stocks or cryptocurrencies—Williams encourages people to keep their choices simple. He specifically called out S&P 500 indexes as one of the best places to invest, with a long history of sustained growth. After all, it delivered an average return of about 10% over the last century, helping usher an unprecedented level of millionaires and billionaires.

“You don’t have to get cute, you don’t need international, you don’t need bonds. You’re not 90 years old. Just do S&P,” Williams tells Fortune.

4. A bonus tip for Gen Z wanting to become millionaires before retirement

For many young people, becoming a millionaire is more than just a retirement dream—it’s an aspiration they want to hit as soon as possible. And while for some, hitting financial goals will mean temporarily saying goodbye to expensive lattes or a vacation to Europe, one of the best ways to build wealth is to simply create your own venture.

“Start something that you can invest in, that you can grow, and start your own business,” said multimillionaire Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec. “It’s the only path to wealth.”

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

© Courtesy of Shark Tank

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• My parents sold their home of 40 years and retired to Barranquilla, Colombia.
• They enjoyed 15 years there, but a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease changed everything.
• Now they're back in in Houston, and I'm navigating their care and finances.

When my parents retired at 70, they both knew immediately where they wanted to go.

With its year-round temperatures of 80 to 90 degrees, peaceful blue waters and a welcoming and lively culture the seaside city of Barranquilla, Colombia, called to them. After all, my Colombian father would be going back to his homeland, and my Cuban mother relished in the Latin culture that seemed so fragmented in the U.S.

They sold their home of more than 40 years in Houston and purchased a two-story condo with a partial ocean view for $135,000 USD. Their social security and retirement money went a long way in Barranquilla, where the average cost of living is much lower than it is in the US.

The move was great, until it wasn't

In the beginning, their retirement life was idyllic. They enjoyed afternoon coffee with friends at sidewalk cafes, they walked along the beach every morning and they would attend parties in their condo development with fellow retirees.

But one day, while they were visiting my family in Texas, my mother stopped and stared at my younger son splashing away in the pool. "Who's that little boy?" she asked. I stared at her face, as she scrutinized my son, with his dark curls and almond brown eyes that looked like mine. "Ma, that's your grandson," I said.

That's when I knew something was terribly wrong. On another visit, my father would wander in the kitchen aimlessly, looking for the cabinet where we kept our water glasses, despite the fact that he had no problem finding them a year ago.

A trip to the neurologist confirmed what I had already suspected. They both had Alzheimer's disease.

We needed to make a plan

While the diagnosis for both of them was still early-stage, I knew what the future held. My grandmother (my mother's mother) and my mother's brother both had Alzheimer's. Worst yet, my father seemed to be progressing at an alarmingly rapid rate. Unfortunately, retiring on the Colombian coast would be a dream unfulfilled.

They decided to move back to Houston to be closer to family and their doctors. They agreed to sell their condo and move in with us temporarily until we could find a suitable assisted living apartment. But it's been tricky. Some days, they would say they were moving back to Barranquilla permanently. It was a constant flip-flop, but my husband and I made an executive decision to keep them in Houston.

They've been living with us since February. In that time, I've had to reset all their passwords because they couldn't remember them. I spend every morning scrambling to the kitchen to make sure I'm there to give them their medication, a routine they consistently forget.

The biggest challenge, though, has been navigating foreign laws. One thing I did early on was get a power of attorney and medical power of attorney. While those two documents have been incredibly helpful in the states, I'm not entirely sure the legal weight these documents may carry in Colombia. I'm currently looking for a lawyer and a real estate agent abroad who can help me with the sale of their condo. Once that's taken care of, I then have to sell all the stuff they've amassed in the 15 years they've lived there.

I'm planning for my own future, too

Perhaps the biggest lesson I've learned in all of this is to be prepared. I plan to sign up for long-term care insurance so my children won't have to stress over how they plan to pay for my care in the same way I have had to with my parents. I've been taking steps to improve my health and I'm also financially prepared for the inevitable — when my parents pass away. Right now, though, I'm going to relish the time I still have with them, here, close to my family.

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• The Great Recession of 2008 hit hard, but you wouldn't know it from the way I was spending.
• I had a job that paid well, so I ignored economic warning signs and overspent in the coming years.
• My mistakes led to years of financial strain that impacted my family and my wellbeing.

Imagine raising five young children, watching the economy collapse into itself, and not changing your spending habits. I don't have to, because it happened to me during the Great Recession of 2008.

I have to say, I don't recommend it. My naivete led to my financial downfall, a divorce, losing touch with my family, and even becoming homeless for a time.

As many of us are now on the edge of our seats wondering what's next for our current economy, I'm planning to be a bit more cautious this time around. I've learned a lot of hard lessons since the last recession, and I won't be making the same mistakes again.

Life seemed good

I felt economically stable in the late-2000s. I had a good salary as a technical writer at Citigroup. My wife and I owned a four-bedroom house, two cars, and had some discretionary money. Our life was comfortable.

I wasn't anxious about the 2007 subprime mortgage implosion. After all, I had a 30-year fixed-rate loan.

I wasn't concerned about the stock market crash of September 2008. In my mind, that was karma hitting back at the never-ending greed of American businesses.

I didn't worry about Citigroup — a multi-national company with billions in assets. Surely, the nearly two-century-old bank was too big to fail.

Then they weren't.

I pretended everything was fine

I obsessively watched Citigroup's stock losemuch of its value. For the briefest of moments in November 2008, it fell below a dollar a share before rallying.

When this happened, I momentarily envisioned a worst-case scenario: Citigroup might rapidly collapse under its financial weight, taking its thousands of employees with it — including me.

I didn't physically reveal my discomfort at the time. Instead, I moved forward like the economic world wasn't on fire. I put on an impassive face and assured my family that nothing was wrong.

My wife and I didn't have late-night chats on proper budgeting. We didn't talk to the kids about tightening our belts. I didn't speak to a financial advisor or shop around for lower car insurance costs. In retrospect, I should have done everything I could to secure my family's financial future.

Instead, I spent thousands of dollars on a family vacation to Disney World. We refinished our deck, purchased new kitchen flooring, and updated appliances. In 2009, we welcomed our fifth child, adding more expenses.

We purchased some of these items with cash (new baby excluded), but a large percentage was purchased with credit, eventually resulting in thousands of dollars of debt.

Still, it seemed like calm seas for the S.S. Keller. However, I wasn't steering a double-hulled cruise ship. I was rowing a dinghy against the current as a waterfall of denial loomed in front of me.

Now I know better

This life of lying to myself and my family hurt everyone in the end. In my mind, it was okay to tap into the savings and use credit for expenses beyond the budget. I had a steady, well-paying job at a large corporation.

Yet, I repeatedly overextended my finances when I should have been reeling in my family's financial habits. Compounding this was undiagnosed bipolar disorder. This contributed to impulsive spending and magical thinking about unrealistic financial assessments, but not all could be blamed on this eventual diagnosis.

The mistakes I made during this time led to my eventual divorce and a stretch of time that I spent homeless. The transition from a four-bedroom house to a minivan was a devastating blow.

Further, each time I review my credit report I cringe at the history of my financial missteps.

I didn't learn how to be financially responsible until after my bipolar diagnosis in 2020. Before that, I spent money as soon as it was earned. I lied to my family and endangered their financial stability. It has taken years to heal the wounds.

I now know that honesty and open communication with your family, even about difficult topics like finances, are essential for navigating uncertainty. While you don't have to prepare for the worst-case scenario, you must have the necessary monetary tools to withstand economic turbulence. This includes an emergency fund, budget, and debt reduction plan. I know this now, and I will be keeping it in mind in the coming months.

Today, I live in Northern Colorado and work hard to maintain a solid financial foundation. Although I recently lost my job, I don't give up and do the minimum to find a new position like I used to. I put in 100%, even when my neurodivergence wants me to do otherwise.

It's a precarious balancing act, especially for someone in their mid-50s. Nevertheless, I'm determined to live a life of abundance instead of scarcity.