Your Savings Rate Percentile: Where Do You Actually Rank?

Most people assume they're saving about as much as their peers. BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey data consistently shows otherwise: the bottom 40% of US households by income save less than 5% of pre-tax income, while the top 20% save upwards of 25%. The gap is wider than most people expect — and it means where you land in the distribution matters more than hitting an arbitrary target like "save 20%."

This article breaks down what the percentile data actually shows, how savings rates vary by country and city, and what it takes to move meaningfully up the distribution.

What savings rate percentile data reveals

Household survey data from sources like the BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey, the ONS Living Costs and Food Survey, and Statistics Canada's Survey of Household Spending share a consistent finding: savings rates are not normally distributed. They skew heavily toward the low end.

In the US, the median household savings rate sits in the range of 5–8% of gross income depending on the year and methodology. That sounds modest, and it is — but it means half of all households are saving less than that. The bottom quintile frequently shows near-zero or negative savings rates, partly because expenditure outpaces reported income for the lowest earners.

In the UK, ONS data shows a similar pattern. Median household savings from the Living Costs and Food Survey tend to cluster below 10% of gross household income, with significant variation by region and tenure status (renters consistently save less than owners at equivalent income levels).

What this means practically: if you're saving 15% of gross income, you're likely in the top quartile in most developed countries. Saving 20% or more puts you in roughly the top 15–20% in the US and UK. These aren't motivational figures — they're what the survey data shows.

How we calculate savings benchmarks explains the specific survey sources and income definitions PathVerdict uses to build these distributions.

How savings rate percentiles shift by country

The aggregate picture changes significantly when you look across the 21 countries PathVerdict covers. Structural differences in healthcare costs, pension contributions, housing markets, and social safety nets all affect what households actually need to save privately.

Australia: ABS Household Expenditure Survey data shows Australian households have a relatively high aggregate savings rate, partly because superannuation (mandatory employer contributions of 11%+ of wages) sits on top of discretionary saving. If you exclude super, voluntary savings rates look similar to the US and UK median.

Germany: Destatis EVS data shows German households consistently save more than their UK and US counterparts on a comparable basis — median saving rates in the 10–15% range are more common. Lower household debt levels and stronger cultural norms around precautionary saving both contribute.

France: INSEE Budget de Famille data reflects a high gross savings rate at the aggregate level, but much of this is concentrated in higher-income deciles. The median French household saves in a range broadly similar to UK medians once you strip out top-decile effects.

Sweden and the Netherlands: SCB HEK and CBS Household Budget Survey data both show relatively high savings rates across the income distribution compared to Anglophone countries, though pension system structures make direct comparisons difficult.

Canada: StatsCan data shows median savings rates broadly in line with the US, though with significant variation by province. Households in high-cost cities like Toronto and Vancouver show compressed savings rates relative to income due to housing costs.

The practical implication: your savings rate percentile is country-specific. A 12% savings rate puts you in a different percentile in Germany than in the US.

City-level variation and what it does to your percentile

National medians obscure large within-country variation. High-cost cities compress savings rates significantly, which means your percentile ranking within a city cohort can look very different from your national ranking.

In London, median rent for a one-bedroom property runs around £1,800–2,000/month in 2024 data. A household earning £60,000 gross (roughly £3,900/month net for a single earner) and paying £1,900/month in rent before food, transport, and other costs has very limited room to save — a 5–8% savings rate might actually represent above-median performance within that city's renter cohort. See Savings rate in London for city-specific benchmarks.

New York shows a parallel pattern. Median one-bedroom rents in Manhattan exceed $3,500/month. A household earning $100,000 gross, netting roughly $6,500/month after federal and state taxes, paying $3,500 in rent, faces a structural constraint that makes national savings rate benchmarks misleading. Check Savings rate in New York for how New York households rank against their local cohort.

This is why percentile comparisons need to be city-adjusted, not just national. Someone saving 8% in London or New York may be performing better relative to their local peers than someone saving 12% in a lower-cost city.

What moves you up the savings rate percentile distribution

The data from household surveys points to a small number of factors that consistently predict higher savings rate percentiles:

Income level: The most consistent predictor across all survey sources. Higher income households save a larger share, not just a larger absolute amount. The marginal propensity to save rises with income. This is structural — it reflects that fixed and near-fixed costs (rent, basic food, utilities) consume a smaller share of higher incomes.

Housing tenure and cost: Households who own outright or have low mortgage balances relative to income save substantially more than renters at equivalent income levels. This appears in BLS, ONS, and ABS data consistently. It's not just about building equity — the stability of housing costs matters.

Household size: Two-income households with shared fixed costs typically achieve higher savings rates than single-person households at the same per-capita income. CBS and SCB data show this clearly in the Netherlands and Sweden.

Debt service: Households carrying high consumer debt (credit cards, personal loans) show lower savings rates independent of income level. The BLS CEX data shows this clearly — debt service costs crowd out savings mechanically.

None of this is surprising, but knowing which factors explain the most variance is useful. If you're trying to improve your percentile, the levers with the largest effect are housing cost relative to income and debt service reduction — not marginal cuts to discretionary spending.

For a broader look at what savings rates look like across the income distribution, What's a good savings rate? covers the benchmarks in more detail.

Frequently asked questions

What savings rate puts you in the top 10%?

Based on BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey data and comparable household surveys in the UK and Australia, a savings rate of approximately 25–30% of gross income is likely to place a household in the top 10% of their national distribution. The exact threshold varies by country — German households would require a somewhat higher rate to reach the top 10%, while US households face a lower bar given the compressed median.

Does my savings rate percentile change if I include employer pension contributions?

Yes, significantly. If your employer contributes to a pension or retirement account on your behalf, including those contributions in your savings rate calculation raises your percentile. Most household surveys count mandatory employer contributions inconsistently — some include them, some don't. PathVerdict's methodology page explains how contributions are handled in each country's calculation.

How does savings rate percentile differ from net worth percentile?

Savings rate measures the flow — what share of current income you're setting aside. Net worth measures the stock — accumulated assets minus liabilities. High savings rate percentile and high net worth percentile correlate strongly over time, but can diverge significantly in the short to medium term. A high earner who recently started saving aggressively may have a high savings rate percentile but a modest net worth. Someone who inherited assets may have high net worth but a low savings rate.

Is a negative savings rate common?

Yes. BLS CEX data shows that the bottom income quintile in the US reports average expenditure that exceeds reported income — implying negative savings at the aggregate level. This is partly a measurement issue (underreported income) and partly real (drawing down savings or taking on debt). ONS data shows similar patterns for the lowest UK income deciles. Negative savings rates are not unusual for households in financial difficulty, recent graduates, or those with temporarily disrupted income.

Knowing your savings rate is one thing — knowing where it sits in the actual distribution of households in your country and city is more useful. PathVerdict calculates your savings rate percentile against household survey data from 21 countries and 92 cities, gives you a verdict in under 30 seconds, and requires no account or signup. If you want to know whether you're ahead, on track, or falling behind relative to households in a comparable position, check your financial position at pathverdict.com.