The 6 Levels of Wealth and How to Reach Them

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Jul 22, 2025

Join Nick Maggiulli, creator of the Of Dollars And Data blog and COO at Ritholtz Wealth Management, as he unpacks his Wealth Ladder concept. Discover six wealth levels that simplify personal finance, from escaping financial instability to achieving travel freedom. Nick emphasizes adapting your spending based on net worth and highlights the importance of increasing earning potential over merely saving. He also discusses strategic investments and the significance of self-awareness in wealth mobility—insights that are useful whether you're just starting or already on your financial journey.

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INSIGHT

The Wealth Ladder Framework

Wealth can be understood as a ladder with six levels based on net worth ranges.
Each level corresponds to increasing financial freedoms like grocery and travel freedom.

ADVICE

Spend According To Net Worth

Base spending decisions on your net worth rather than your income.
The 0.01% Rule helps you know how much you can spend daily without jeopardizing wealth.

INSIGHT

Asset Allocation Shifts With Wealth

Asset allocation changes as you move up the wealth ladder.
Higher wealth levels hold more income-producing assets like stocks and businesses.

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You've heard the advice that to build wealth, you need to earn more, spend less, and invest consistently. But what if there was a clearer way to understand exactly where you stand financially — and what steps you should take to reach the next level?

My guest, Nick Maggiulli, offers just such a framework. Nick is the creator of the Of Dollars And Data blog, the Chief Operating Officer at Ritholtz Wealth Management, and the author of The Wealth Ladder. Today on the show, he unpacks the Wealth Ladder concept, taking the complex, often overwhelming concept of personal finance and distilling it into six easy-to-understand wealth levels, each tied to specific net-worth milestones and financial freedoms.

Nick walks us through each rung of the Wealth Ladder, from getting out of financial instability to achieving restaurant and travel freedom, and eventually reaching upper levels of significant financial independence. We discuss the distinct strategies you should utilize on each rung to make the most of that level and move on to the next. And we get into why your spending decisions should be based on your net worth rather than your income, how wealth allocation changes dramatically as you climb the ladder, and why increasing your earning potential becomes more important than penny-pinching as you progress.

Whether you're just getting started or well on your financial journey, this episode provides actionable insights and practical wisdom for climbing the Wealth Ladder and securing a life of greater freedom and fulfillment.

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