The price of happiness? $200,000, according to one recent survey

A new survey found that, despite the cliche about money and happiness, a majority of Americans know the amount of money they would need to feel content.

Financial advice website Cardrates.com found that 56% of Americans say they would be content with a liquid net worth of over $200,000 dollars.

The survey, comprised of 786 employed Americans who are between 18 and 43 years old, found that having money may not buy happiness, but a safety net does allow one not to worry about a financial emergency.

"Knowing you’ve got money set aside can ease worries about future uncertainties, whether a medical emergency or a layoff," Jon McDonald, author of Cardrate's summary of the study wrote. "This peace of mind goes a long way in feeling happy overall."

The amount of money Americans need has grown in over a decade as a 2010 Gallup survey found that the annual salary respondents said would maximize happiness was $75,000.

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The average American made $59,384 per year at the end of 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

As income rises, amount needed to be happy does too

The study found that the respondents with higher salaries said that they would require more money to be content.

Seventy-four percent of respondents currently making $40,000 said that they would be content making $150,000, compared to 64% of those who currently make $150,000.

McDonald pointed to the Hedonic Treadmill phenomenon to explain the responses, saying that, "people chase a higher income to achieve happiness, only to return to a baseline level of contentment after a short-lived boost." 

Generational differences in money and contentment

The study found that millennials and Gen Z respondents differed in their priorities regarding salaries and investments.

Millennial respondents said that they would be more content with a higher salary job, whereas Gen Z respondents favored having a higher liquid net worth.

Seventy-five percent of millennial respondents surveyed said would feel content with a $150k salary, compared to 71% of Gen Z, whereas 84% of Gen Z respondents said they would be comfortable with a $1,000,000 liquid net worth compared to 81% of millennial respondents.

McDonald pointed to the formative economic environments of each generation for the differences, saying that the larger paycheck was a sign of accomplishment for the millennial generation economically delayed by the Great Recession and that Gen Z, shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic, found that building assets was a safer strategy.