Average Inheritance: What the Data Shows

Updated April 2026 with recent data.

Inheritance is one of those topics where expectations and reality rarely line up. The average inheritance for U.S. households is around $46,200, according to available Federal Reserve data. But that single figure does almost no work on its own. Wealth tier, education level, the age someone dies, and whether assets pass through a trust all push the inheritance number well above or below that baseline.

Here’s what the research on inheritance shows, and how to factor it into your plan.

The Average Inheritance Is About $46,200 (and That Number Is Misleading)

The latest Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances data puts the average household inheritance at approximately $46,200. For the bottom 50% of households, that drops to $9,700.

The national average isn’t useless, but it’s pulled upward by large transfers at the top of the wealth distribution. For most families, what actually transfers is considerably less than the national figure suggests.

Education Level Affects What Families Leave Behind

The Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances breaks down inheritance data by parental education level:

• Households whose parents did not hold a college degree: $76,200 median inheritance received
• Households whose parents held a college degree: $92,700 median inheritance received

The divide did widen further, but it’s narrower than many might think. Non-college households build wealth through homeownership and other assets too. The college premium shows up more in income. The inheritance gap between these groups is smaller than their income difference would suggest.

Trusts Produce a Fundamentally Different Outcome

Survey of Consumer Finances data shows a sharp divide between wealth that passes outside a trust versus through one:

• Median inheritance (no trust): $69,000 | Average: $707,291
• Median inheritance through a trust: $285,000 | Average: $4,062,918

Trust distributions concentrate at the high end of the wealth spectrum. For middle-income families, inheritance is far more likely to arrive without trust structures in place, and far smaller when it does.

When a Parent Dies Shapes What Gets Left Behind

A United Income study found that average net wealth left at death follows a pattern through the retirement decades:

• 60s: $296,000
• 70s: $313,000
• 80s: $315,000
• 90s: $238,000

Wealth rises through the 80s as assets continue to grow, then falls in the 90s as healthcare and long-term care costs take their share. The pattern matters whether you’re estimating what you might receive or figuring out what you’re likely to leave.

Wealth Tier Is the Biggest Variable

Average figures obscure how concentrated inheritance really is. According to Demos analysis:

• The least wealthy families have received an average of $6,100 in inheritance
• The wealthiest 1% have received an average of $2.7 million

That $447-to-$1 ratio is what inherited wealth looks like when large transfers compound across generations. Families at the lower end receive too little for it to grow into anything.

$124 Trillion in Wealth Is Transferring Over the Next Two Decades

Cerulli Associates’ December 2024 projections estimate $124 trillion will transfer through 2048:

• $105 trillion goes to heirs; $18 trillion to charity
• Baby Boomers and older generations account for nearly $100 trillion of the total
• Millennials are projected to receive the largest share: $45.6 trillion
• Gen X is projected to receive $39 trillion

A 2026 CNBC analysis added that $54 trillion of this transfer is expected to go to surviving spouses, with 95% of it to women. For women approaching or in retirement, that concentration of incoming wealth makes estate planning literacy a real priority.

The scale of this transfer matters for planning. The wealth exists and it’s moving. How much of it arrives, when, and in what form depends on healthcare costs, longevity, estate planning decisions, and whether families have the right documents in place.

The Federal Estate Tax Affects Very Few Families

The federal estate tax exemption rose to $15 million per individual in 2026. Transfers below that threshold don’t trigger federal estate tax. For the vast majority of families, the estate tax isn’t a planning factor.

What matters more for most households: probate, beneficiary designations, and whether assets are titled correctly. A missing or outdated beneficiary form can override a carefully written will.

What Boldin Users Are Planning to Leave

In the Boldin Planner, users who have set a legacy goal above $0 show a wide range. Among the 86,797 users in that group:

• Average estate goal: $4,273,800
• Median goal: $1,000,000
• 25th percentile: $500,000 / 75th percentile: $3,000,000

About 28.5% of users have $0 as their goal, which is a reasonable call when the priority is funding a long retirement rather than maximizing what’s left over.

Boldin users tend to be wealthier than average, so these figures run well above the national picture. The goals have also roughly doubled since 2024, reflecting both a growing and shifting user base and asset appreciation over that period. hey aren’t benchmarks for most households, but they signal what engaged retirement planners are targeting.

The Planner lets you set your own target, stress-test it against different return and longevity scenarios, and see how it interacts with your income and withdrawal timing.

Sharing Wealth While You’re Alive Often Makes More Sense

A lot of wealth moves before death. Common vehicles include:

• Tuition payments and 529 contributions
• Down payment assistance
• Help with living expenses
• Multi-generational living arrangements
• Annual gifts

For families with larger estates, lifetime gifting can reduce what’s exposed to estate tax while letting the giver see the impact firsthand. The annual gift exclusion is $19,000 per recipient in 2026.

Inheritance Planning Starts With Your Own Financial Security

Don’t count on receiving it 

Longer lifespans and rising healthcare costs have eroded many anticipated inheritances. If you’re counting on an inheritance to fund retirement, model your plan with and without it. The gap tells you what your plan needs, and the adjustments are often smaller than people expect.

Fund your own retirement before worrying about what you’ll leave

Most heirs prefer financially secure parents to a larger inheritance. That preference shows up in survey data consistently, and it’s worth taking at face value.

If you want to leave something specific, build it into your plan now

Guessing isn’t a strategy. The Boldin Planner lets you set a legacy target and track your probability of hitting it. You can change your spending assumptions, adjust your portfolio return, or shift your longevity estimate and immediately see how your projected estate responds.

Have the conversation

Different families carry different expectations around inheritance. Talking through what you plan to leave, and what heirs should or shouldn’t count on, prevents a lot of conflict and misplanning on both sides.

Inheritance can involve real uncertainty. Your own financial plan doesn’t have to carry that same uncertainty. The Boldin Planner gives you a clear view of where you stand, what you’re on track to leave, and how specific changes affect the outcome. For most people, running the numbers replaces a lot of guesswork with a path they can commit to.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Average Inheritance