Learn how much is 6 figures, as well as 7, 8, and 9 figures. Find out if making a 6 figure income makes sense to your lifestyle, and learn some ways to get there!
Six figures means you earn anywhere from $100K to $999K in a year, so it is a pretty wide range of income.
When you begin to embark on the journey of figuring out if earning 6 figures is your best goal and how it can make your life better, there are several factors to consider.
Yes, at first glance earning over $100,000 annually sounds amazing and seems like the best way to become financially independent. But is it the only way to grow wealth? Certainly not!
There are countless factors that play into your goal of not living paycheck to paycheck and earning enough money is just one of the many factors that you need to account for in order to gain the skills that are required to become financially free.
Learn the difference between being rich vs. being wealthy.
Earning 6 figures is awesome, if your lifestyle works with it
In theory, there are so many reasons why earning 6 figures sounds amazing- how could it not? There are some factors, however, that we need to address before we go any further.
These are the factors that can make a 6 figure income less than glamorous.
Related: How Much is a Million Dollars?
Student Debt
Having student loans is one of the top reasons that will hither your fun no matter how much money you earn. No matter what, your income is ultimately less when you need to spend hundreds every month to pay off your student debt.
Location, location, location
Where you live plays a big part in how much 6 figures actually is. Looking at something as simple as looking at the cost of living in an expensive city like San Diego vs. living in Waco, Texas can tell you a lot.
As you guys know, I live in San Diego and make a 6 figure income. However, we are far from rich as out house cost $650K so we have a pretty hefty mortgage. A low six figure income here is definitely still middle class.
Time
Looking at how much time you actually spend to earn your income is pretty important when you are looking at how much 6 figures is.
If you are working 20-hour workdays without taking any time off, you are actually working 140 hours a week. That’s 100 extra hours a week that you could be investing in whatever makes life more enjoyable. Plus, simple math means that you are earning less than $14 an hour– is it worth it?
Do you love what you do?
Countless studies look at how you feel about your profession. It turns out that your feelings toward your job actually plays a tremendous part in how long you live and if you actually enjoy your day to day. That means it’s important.
When you begin to look at how much 6 figures is and determine if you really need that in your life, remember to incorporate if that profession is actually enjoyable or not.
6 Figure Jobs
Less than 10% of American make a six figure income (and you’ll see below it’s not needed to live a great lifestyle and build wealth!).
According to the Balance, these are the top 10 best 6 figure salary jobs you can get (this is not an all inclusive list):
- Actuary – median salary $103K
- Anesthesiologist – median salary $292K
- Computer Scientist – median salary $118K
- Dentist – median salary $156K
- Financial Manager – median salary $123K
- Internist (Doctor) – median salary $195K
- Nurse Practitioner – median salary $114K
- Gynecologist – median salary $208K
- Petroleum Engineer – median salary $137K
- Software Developer – median salary $136K
Note that some of the above (dentist, doctor, actuary) require a significant amount of schooling, which typically means student loans. So like we mentioned above, you’ll want to evaluate whether the higher income is worth the student loan payments along with the potential to work long hours.
That said, there are also some 6 figure jobs that don’t require significant schooling, and can be structured to work very few hours per week (after they’re established of course):
- Blogger – If you’re willing to put in the work to grow a blog, you can make it to 6 figures and create some passive income. You can also work from anywhere in the world, which is awesome! Learn how to start a blog here.
- Business owner – Depending on the business, you can grow to earn six figures without having a degree of any sort.
- Bookkeeper – becoming a bookkeeper can be incredibly lucrative if you’re someone who is good at numbers. Learn more about starting a bookkeeping business.
- Web Developer/Designer
Check out my full list of work from home jobs that can potentially pay up to $100K!
Do You Really Need 6 Figures?
After evaluating the factors listed above, I want to encourage you to decide if earning 6 figures is really the goal you are shooting for.
Statistically, to become one of the few women that achieve their goal of earning over $100,000 annually, it can be extremely difficult. In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, most people end up earning in the mid $50k’s by the time they are 34.
While earning a little more than $1,000 a week isn’t something to be ashamed of, it isn’t close to that goal of 6 figures that so many of us dream of.
I think a better question to ask of yourself is why you are reaching for that 6 figure goal. For most, it is the dream of financial security and to – finally – stop living paycheck to paycheck.
Here’s the good news- you can actually achieve financial security with almost any salary! A few adjustments (and maybe a few sacrifices) can help you live a simple life that builds wealth.
Ways to Increase Wealth Without Earning 6 Figures
The most important thing to do when you are craving a secure financial future is to look at how you spend money currently. If you spend your entire paycheck on luxuries every time you get paid, what’s to say that you will stop that habit if you began earning 6 figures?
Getting into the habit now of intentional spending will help you develop the habits that you need and help you see that life is so much more than simply earning more than 6 figures (start learning how with this financial budget makeover!).
So, what are some ways that you can increase your wealth now? Well, I am glad you asked.
Keep reading for some of my go-to suggestions for anyone looking to build wealth!
Get Out of Debt
Getting out of debt is one of the best ways to increase your income without a raise. How many times have you gotten paid and have to pay $50 to a credit card, another $100 to student loans, and then $75 to a medical bill? That is all debt, and it doesn’t need to be that way.
Sit down, make a plan to get out of debt as soon as possible. Maybe you pick up a part time weekend job or maybe you begin an at-home bakery business and sell birthday cakes- anything to bring in some extra money.
Then you use that money to pay off those debts. Slowly and surely, that extra money will pay off your other debts and soon you will have an extra $225 in your pocket, instead of debt collectors!
Evaluate Your Lifestyle
I will warn you- when I decided to build my wealth despite earning less than 6 figures, this one hurt me. A lot.
Evaluating my lifestyle was one of the most difficult but essential things that I had to do in order to begin saving my money. Learning how to live a simple life was key to my financial well being.
Looking at things like buying an Americano for $1 versus a $5 Vanilla Latte at the coffee house anytime I am trying to get work done for this website. When I sat down and did the fast math, I learned pretty quickly how much those latte’s were adding up.
There are countless ways to spend money wisely that help you save in the long run. Looking for ways to cut spending but not your happiness is completely possible!
Talk to Your Human Resources Department
When I started looking at my paycheck’s breakdown, I went to the head of my HR to ask for their help to make sure that I was set up for success. That is what they went to school for, right?
The first thing that they showed me was my company’s 401k options and how I wasn’t taking full advantage of the program. You see, most companies will match what you are putting into the account by a certain amount (so by saving 4% of your paycheck, you are really saving 8% for your retirement- that’s free money).
HR Departments are there to help you get the most out of everything that a company can provide, so why not send an email and set up a meeting?
Save Your Money
When calculating how much is 6 figures and if you really need that much of an income, what it really boils down to is if you have the ability to save money or not.
Get into the habit of saving money asap- trust me. The most important thing that you can be saving for is your future- that means your retirement.
So many people do not think ahead enough to ensure that they will be able to live comfortably when they are retired- don’t let that be you. Saving for retirement means putting a way a little bit each month and letting its worth grow.
Increase Your Income
The best way to get more money is to ask for a raise, plain and simple. Take an honest look at the work that you are doing and who you work for and decide for yourself if asking for a raise is a wise move.
Another option is to find another job with a higher paying salary. Think about it- if you are a customer service manager at ABC company and they can’t (or won’t) give you that raise that you need to support your family, looking into another company may give you a higher salary for the same amount of work.
The last way to increase your income (we talked about this a little bit earlier) is to get a second job, or a side hustle. If you are super organized, for example, maybe becoming a virtual administrative assistant is the right path for you.
Try some of these other ways to make some extra money:
- Start a bookkeeping business on the side
- Learn how to flip websites
- Start a blog
- Make money with online surveys
- Start affiliate marketing (Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing is an awesome class to get started!!)
You can also always make extra money with these 100+ ways to make $100 fast or make money without working!
How Much is A 7 Figure Income?
Earning 7 figures is much less common than earning 6 figures. Seven figures means you are earning from $1M to $9.9M, which is a significant amount of money.
From CEOs to business owners, these are the most common jobs that can earn a 7 figure income:
- CEO (Chief Executive Officer) or other C level executives
- Business owners – as a business owner, you have the ability to earn a significant amount of income.
- Investment Banker
- Corporate lawyer
- Athletes
- Actors/Actresses
- Bloggers – yes again, being a blogger can make you significant income. (see how this blogger makes $1M year travelling the country in an RV!)
How Much is An 8 Figure Income?
An 8 figure income means you make from $10M to $99M. This is far less common than a 6 or 7 figure income. Here are some job you can potentially make this kind of money with:
- Athlete
- Actor/Actress
- Hedge fund managers
- Business owners
- Website owners/bloggers
- Lottery winners
How Much is a 9 Figure Income?
A 9 figure income is anyone who makes $100M and above. This kind if income is not typical and very difficult to obtain by working any kind of jobs.
None figure income are usually obtained by movie stars, athletes, and business owners.
For instance, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, makes a 9 figure income easy.
These are the top .01% of people in the world, and while I’m not going to tell you it’s impossible to make this much, it will be very difficult to get to this level of income.
In Conclusion
When you begin your journey of how much 6 figures is and how to achieve that goal, there are so many factors to consider. Between evaluating your lifestyle and looking into side hustles, there are so many ways to help you increase your savings and increase your financial independence.
