Income
Money received over a period of time.
Example: Pay from a job over a year is one source of income.
Learn by trying
Money ideas you can see.
Use a few small examples to learn the big words. You do not have to share your own finances.
Try the family money simulator
What changes when
one number moves?
Raise a home's value. Change a debt payment. See why wealth and money left for bills can tell different stories.
For wealth professionals
Teach first. Start a conversation.
Create a branded simulator and services page through the AdvertisingAgency.us campaign.
Explore the $100 one-time campaignTry a made-up family
What is left after the debt?
Change the numbers. Watch the answer change.
What is owned$300,000
Minus what is owed− $190,000
Net worth$110,000
This is value on a balance sheet. It is not all cash you can spend.
This is a teaching example, not a survey response or a financial plan. Your numbers stay in this page and are not saved or sent.
Why two averages can tell different stories
Five families. One big change.
Imagine these are five families' savings. Change the largest amount.
Family 1$10
Family 2$20
Family 3$30The middle
Family 4$40
Family 5$50
Median · middle$30
Mean · average$30
Both measures are $30. Now try changing just one family.
Made-up amounts for learning. These are not SCF findings.
A small dictionary
Big words.
Simple meanings.
Try saying each idea in your own words. Then look for it in the survey story.
Assets
Things a family owns that have money value.
Example: A home, savings, investments, and a car can be assets.
Debt
Money a family owes.
Example: A mortgage or a credit-card balance is debt.
Net worth
Assets minus debts, measured at a point in time.
Example: $50,000 of assets minus $20,000 of debts leaves $30,000.
Median
The middle value after numbers are put in order.
Example: For $10, $20, and $90, the median is $20.
Mean
The average: add the values and divide by how many there are.
Example: For $10, $20, and $90, the mean is $40.
Inflation-adjusted dollars
Amounts put into the same year's buying power for a fairer comparison.
Example: Our survey dollar comparisons use 2025 dollars.
Percentage point
The difference between two percentages.
Example: 8.6% minus 6.5% is 2.1 percentage points.
Survey weight
A number that helps a sampled family stand for families in the wider population.
Example: A survey participant does not always count equally in a national estimate.
Implicate
One completed version of a record used to handle missing answers.
Example: The SCF has five versions per public family, not five separate families.
The Money Room
Watch a little.
Understand a lot.
Bring a YouTube video, listen to an MP3, or play an MP4. Pause and learn at your own pace.
Questions people ask
Start with a good question.
Is this a survey I can fill out here?
No. This is an independent guide to the official Federal Reserve survey. Our tools are learning examples. We do not collect SCF interview responses.
Is a median the same as an average?
Not always. The median is the middle. The mean is the total divided by the count. One very large value can move the mean while the middle stays the same.
Can I find the number for my ZIP Code?
The figures in this guide are national. They are not ZIP Code estimates, and we do not turn national results into made-up local numbers.
Do you save the numbers I try?
No. The learning tools run in your page. Their numbers are not sent to the site or stored as survey answers.