They Make More Than $300,000 a Year — And Still Say They’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck

Even America’s highest earners are feeling financially stuck.

More than a third of people making over $300,000 say they are living paycheck to paycheck, according to Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s recent 2026 retirement report. Goldman Sachs based the research on a July 2026 survey of 5,106 U.S. adults, including both retirees and people who were still working.

“One of the more remarkable findings is whether or not financial security improves linearly with income,” Chris Ceder, a senior retirement strategist at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, recently told Yahoo Finance.

The survey found that financial strain does not decline as pay rises. Instead, Goldman Sachs found a U-shaped pattern. Americans earning between $100,000 and $300,000 reported feeling less financially stretched than both lower-income workers and those making more than $300,000.

That same divide appears in other measures of financial health, including making retirement contributions and relying on minimum credit-card payments, Ceder said.

Parallels between incomes of $50,000 and $300,000

Data from credit cards illustrates the trend. About 40% of workers earning under $100,000 said they pay only the minimum on their cards, or less. That share falls to 35% among those earning $100,000 to $300,000, then rises to 42% among people earning more than $300,000.

The pressure is especially visible among the country’s highest earners. Nearly half of respondents making at least $500,000 said they made only the minimum payment on a credit card this year, up from 39% a year earlier, according to Goldman Sachs’ retirement trends survey. That finding challenges the assumption that a larger paycheck automatically creates more financial flexibility.

“There’s obviously a big difference between what it means to have an income of $50,000 and below versus $300,000-plus,” Ceder said. “But in terms of how it is manifesting in financial strain, there certainly are some parallels.”

Fragile financial security

For households earning less than $100,000, 42% reported they are living paycheck to paycheck. More than two-thirds of respondents at that income level said they had postponed a financial milestone, like hitting a goal on their retirement savings.

However, high-income respondents reported a similarly fragile sense of financial security. Of people earning more than $300,000, 36% said they were living paycheck to paycheck, and more than two-thirds said they had delayed a financial goal.

By contrast, 23% of those earning between $100,000 and $300,000 described themselves as living paycheck to paycheck. 

Across all income groups, nearly 70% of Americans surveyed said they had recently put off a major financial goal.

The Goldman Sachs survey does not suggest that a household earning $500,000 faces the same material hardship as one earning $50,000. Instead, it shows that financial stress can surface across income brackets. 

“For generations, the retirement security formula was straightforward: Work consistently, save diligently, and security would follow,” the report said. “While workers may look financially stable externally, underneath, they’re working more, delaying major goals and supplementing their income.”

Even America’s highest earners are feeling financially stuck.

More than a third of people making over $300,000 say they are living paycheck to paycheck, according to Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s recent 2026 retirement report. Goldman Sachs based the research on a July 2026 survey of 5,106 U.S. adults, including both retirees and people who were still working.

“One of the more remarkable findings is whether or not financial security improves linearly with income,” Chris Ceder, a senior retirement strategist at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, recently told Yahoo Finance.