Wealth means different things to different people – while most measure it in dollars, many would argue that true wealth is also about living a long and fulfilling life. But today, we’re sticking with the value of one’s financial assets to unpack a new study of the world’s richest countries based on median wealth. This year, Australia ranked second out of 56 countries, beaten only by Europe’s Luxembourg.
This ranking comes from Swiss bank UBS’s 16th annual Global Wealth Report, built on data from the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and central banks worldwide. Instead of solely relying on GDP per capita, the report focuses on median wealth per adult – the total value of assets and investments (minus debts) held by the person in the middle of a country’s wealth distribution, built over time rather than in a single year. This paints a better picture of where money is made and kept, and isn’t skewed by the extreme wealth of billionaires.
Australia currently stands as the second-wealthiest country in the world, with a median wealth per adult of US$268,000 (AU$413,000). In other words, half the population has more than this amount and half has less. Meanwhile, Australia ranks fifth out of 56 countries for average wealth per adult at US$620,000 (AU$955,000).
But it’s not all about the cash money Down Under. Australia has the lowest proportion of wealth held in cash, securities and deposits at just over ten per cent – roughly half the amount in Switzerland, Singapore and the United Kingdom. The majority of our nation’s wealth is tied up in non-financial assets, with real estate alone accounting for 53 per cent. For comparison, the share of wealth in real estate in the United States is just 30 per cent.
Perhaps the most mind-boggling fact is that one in ten Australians is a millionaire in US dollars (equating to AU$1.54 million). This puts us eighth on UBS’s Millionaire Index, with 1.9 million Aussies sitting on a seven-figure fortune. Leading the pack is the US with 23.8 million millionaires – more than four times as many as mainland China in second, and beating the combined total of France, the UK, Germany, Canada, Japan and Australia.
The 10 richest countries in the world by median wealth
- Luxembourg (US$395,340 / AU$609,000)
- Australia (US$268,424 / AU$413,000)
- Belgium (US$153,539 / AU$237,000)
- Hong Kong SAR (US$222,015 / AU$342,000)
- Denmark (US$216,098 / AU$333,000)
- New Zealand (US$207,707 / AU$320,000)
- Switzerland (US$182,248 / AU$281,000)
- United Kingdom (US$176,370 / AU$372,000)
- Canada (US$151,910 / AU$234,000)
- France (US$146,017 / AU$225,000)
All currency conversions from USD to AUD are approximate, based on exchange rates on 19 August 2025.