In a world where headlines often focus on the ultra-wealthy, a quieter but also profound shift is under way: the rapid ascent of the “Everyday Millionaire,” or EMILLI.
According to the 2025 edition of the UBS Global Wealth Report, this group—defined as individuals with assets between $1 million and $5 million—has grown from a niche segment to a global economic force, reshaping the landscape of personal wealth and investment.
A Fourfold Surge Since 2000
At the dawn of the millennium, there were just over 13 million EMILLIs worldwide, according to UBS Global Wealth Management. Fast forward to the end of 2024, and that number had “skyrocketed” to nearly 52 million—a more than fourfold increase in less than a quarter-century. Even after adjusting for inflation, the number of EMILLIs has more than doubled in real terms since 2000.
The collective wealth of EMILLIs is considerable. By the end of 2024, this group controlled approximately $107 trillion—over four times their total at the start of the millennium and nearly matching the $119 trillion held by those with more than $5 million in assets. The EMILLI cohort now accounts for a significant share of global wealth. This long-term trend is “visible nearly everywhere around the globe,” UBS says.
What’s Driving the EMILLI Boom?
The report doesn’t explicitly call out the factors underpinning the rise of the everyday millionaire, but some general explanations on a wealthier world are made in the foreword by UBS Global Wealth Management’s Chief Economist Paul Donovan.
“Demographics and long-term asset price trends mean dramatic breaks in the allocation of wealth are rare,” he says. “This report shows persistent and significant ongoing trends — the great wealth transfer, the importance of
property, women’s increasing control of wealth, and so on. This has changed the nature of wealth over the past decades, in an evolutionary way.”
The report highlights:
- Real Estate Appreciation: The sustained increase in real estate values across major markets is a significant driver of growing wealth.
- Financial Market Access: Broader access to financial markets, coupled with long-term growth in equities and mutual funds, has enabled more individuals to accumulate substantial portfolios.
- Entrepreneurship and Private Business: A global trend toward entrepreneurship and self-employment suggests many EMILLIs are business owners.
- Demographic Shifts: The ongoing “great wealth transfer”—an estimated $83 trillion expected to change hands over the next 20–25 years—means more individuals are inheriting or receiving significant assets, often propelling them into the EMILLI bracket.
A Global Phenomenon, with Local Flavors
While the EMILLI trend is global, its pace and character vary by region:
- United States: The US remains the epicenter, with the largest number of EMILLIs and a culture that encourages investment in both real estate and financial markets.
- Europe and Asia: Growth has been robust in Europe and parts of Asia, particularly in countries where property values have surged and financial literacy has improved.
- Emerging Markets: The number of EMILLIs is also rising in emerging markets, though often from a lower base and with greater reliance on real estate than on financial assets.
- Heterogeneous: What unites EMILLIs is not a particular lifestyle or background, but the quiet accumulation of assets over time.
- Wealth Distribution: As the number of EMILLIs grows, wealth is becoming more broadly distributed, though significant gaps remain between regions and within societies.
Looking Ahead
The UBS report projects expects more than 5 million new millionaires globally by 2029, suggesting that the number of EMILLIs will continue to climb as well. As asset prices rise and the great wealth transfer accelerates, the Everyday Millionaire will become an even more prominent feature of the global economic landscape.
For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.
