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UK Wealth Data

How Many Millionaires Are There in the UK?

A look at how many millionaires the UK has, how "millionaire" is counted, and how household wealth is spread, drawn from official statistics.

9 min read · Written by the Fairchild Oldfield team · Last reviewed: July 2026

2 million+
Estimated number of US-dollar millionaires in the United Kingdom, ranking it among the countries with the largest millionaire populations.
Source: UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, data as at end 2025 (ubs.com), a secondary estimate, subject to change.

The United Kingdom is home to more than 2 million US-dollar millionaires, according to the UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, which draws on data as at the end of 2025 (ubs.com, 2026, a secondary estimate, subject to change). Official UK statistics do not publish a single headline "millionaire count", so the answer depends heavily on how wealth is defined.

This piece pulls together what the named official sources actually say: how UK household and individual wealth is distributed, drawn from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), and how the very largest estates interact with inheritance tax, drawn from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). Figures are current as at July 2026 and are subject to change. It is general information, not advice.

How many millionaires are there in the UK?

The most widely cited count comes from the UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, which estimates that the UK held more than 2 million US-dollar millionaires as at the end of 2025 (ubs.com, 2026, subject to change). This is a modelled private-sector estimate rather than an official UK statistic, and it counts individuals in US dollars, so the sterling picture can differ. UK government bodies measure wealth differently, as the sections below set out.

Key figures at a glance

No single official body publishes "the number of UK millionaires", so the figures below sit side by side: a private-sector headcount alongside the official ONS wealth distribution and HMRC estate data. Each row names its source and reference period. Because the sources use different definitions and years, the numbers are not directly comparable, and every figure is subject to change.

StatisticFigureSource (period)
US-dollar millionaires in the UK More than 2 million UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, data as at end 2025 (secondary estimate)
Median household total wealth, Great Britain £293,700 ONS, Apr 2020 to Mar 2022
Threshold to be in the wealthiest 10% of households £1,200,500 or more ONS, Apr 2020 to Mar 2022
Threshold to be in the wealthiest 1% of households £3,121,500 or more ONS, Apr 2020 to Mar 2022
Median individual total wealth, Great Britain £125,000 ONS, Apr 2018 to Mar 2020
UK estates paying inheritance tax 31,500 HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023
Share of UK deaths resulting in an IHT charge 4.62% HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023

Sources as linked above. UBS figures are a clearly-attributed secondary estimate; ONS and HMRC figures are official statistics. All figures as at July 2026 and subject to change.

How "millionaire" is measured

A "millionaire" is not one fixed thing. The count changes depending on whether wealth is measured in pounds or US dollars, per person or per household, and before or after debts. It also depends on which assets count, as pensions and property make up a large share of many people's wealth. That is why estimates from different bodies can differ widely.

The private-sector UBS figure counts individual adults whose net wealth exceeds one million US dollars (ubs.com, 2026, subject to change). The ONS, by contrast, measures total wealth in pounds through the Wealth and Assets Survey, combining property, private pension, financial and physical wealth. On that ONS basis, median household total wealth in Great Britain was £293,700 in the period April 2020 to March 2022 (ONS, published January 2025, subject to change), while median individual total wealth was £125,000 in April 2018 to March 2020 (ONS, published January 2022, subject to change).

Whether someone is a "millionaire" often turns on whether their home and pension are counted, and in which currency.

The distribution

Where the wealth sits

Official ONS estimates suggest a household needed total wealth of £1,200,500 or more to sit in the wealthiest 10% in Great Britain, and £3,121,500 or more to sit in the wealthiest 1%, in the period April 2020 to March 2022 (ONS, published January 2025, subject to change). This helps explain why a seven-figure estate is more common than many people assume once a home and pension are included.

Household wealth group (GB)Total wealth (Apr 2020 to Mar 2022)
Least wealthy 10%£16,500 or less
Median household£293,700
Wealthiest 10% (from)£1,200,500 or more
Wealthiest 1% (from)£3,121,500 or more

Source: ONS, Household total wealth in Great Britain, April 2020 to March 2022, published January 2025. Figures cover Great Britain, not the whole UK, and are subject to change.

The top tenth

£1.2m+

The wealthiest 10% of households each held total wealth of at least £1,200,500 in April 2020 to March 2022 (ONS, subject to change). Much of this wealth is held in pensions and property rather than cash.

Millionaires and inheritance tax

Being a "millionaire" on paper does not automatically mean a large inheritance tax bill. In the tax year 2022 to 2023, 31,500 UK estates were taxpaying for inheritance tax, equal to 4.62% of deaths, so fewer than 1 in 20 estates paid the tax (HMRC, published July 2025, subject to change). Allowances, reliefs and spouse exemptions mean the effective rate is usually well below the headline 40%.

Inheritance tax measure (tax year 2022 to 2023)Figure
Estates paying inheritance tax31,500
Total IHT liabilities£6.70 billion
Average effective rate on taxpaying estates13% (vs 40% headline)
Share of UK deaths incurring IHT4.62%

Source: HMRC, Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics commentary, published 31 July 2025, subject to change.

The reason a million-pound estate can still fall outside inheritance tax is the structure of the allowances. Each person has a nil-rate band of £325,000, plus a residence nil-rate band of up to £175,000 where a home passes to direct descendants, and married couples and civil partners can combine these to pass on up to £1,000,000 before inheritance tax may apply (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). These thresholds are frozen until the end of the 2030-31 tax year (5 April 2031) (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). Our Inheritance Tax Explained guide sets out how the bands work in more detail.

What the numbers mean

Read together, the data suggests millionaire status in the UK is increasingly defined by property and pension wealth rather than cash in the bank, and that the group is larger and more ordinary than the word implies. The wealthiest 10% of households each held at least £1,200,500 in April 2020 to March 2022 (ONS, subject to change), a level many long-term homeowners with a workplace pension can reach.

A second point is the gap between headline wealth and tax exposure. Even though millions of people may hold seven-figure wealth by some measures, only 31,500 estates were taxpaying for inheritance tax in 2022 to 2023 (HMRC, subject to change). With the nil-rate bands frozen until the end of 2030-31 while asset values may keep rising (gov.uk, subject to change), that gap could narrow over time, which is one reason many people choose to review their arrangements periodically.

A word of caution on trends. The ONS has revised how it treats pension wealth, and it notes that comparisons between recent survey periods can be difficult; the accreditation of its household wealth statistics was also temporarily suspended in 2025 pending a quality review (ONS, published January 2025). Point-in-time levels are therefore more reliable here than year-on-year change, so this piece avoids implying a precise trend.

None of this is personal advice, and none of these figures can tell you where any individual estate stands. Where wealth is spread across a home, pensions and investments, it can be worth discussing the position with a qualified professional. You can see how the pieces fit together in our estate planning guide, and explore the wider picture in our overview of UK household wealth.

Sources and methodology

The headcount cited here comes from a private-sector report, while the structural wealth and tax figures come from official UK statistics. Each is measured on a different basis and for a different period, so they should be read alongside one another rather than combined. Every figure in this article is dated at its point of use and is subject to change.

  • UBS Global Wealth Report 2026 (secondary estimate): more than 2 million US-dollar millionaires in the UK, data as at end 2025 (ubs.com).
  • ONS, Household total wealth in Great Britain, April 2020 to March 2022 (published 24 January 2025): median household wealth £293,700; wealthiest 10% from £1,200,500; wealthiest 1% from £3,121,500; least wealthy 10% £16,500 or less (ons.gov.uk). Accreditation of these statistics was temporarily suspended in 2025 pending a quality review.
  • ONS, Distribution of individual total wealth by characteristic in Great Britain, April 2018 to March 2020 (published 7 January 2022): median individual total wealth £125,000 (ons.gov.uk).
  • HMRC, Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics commentary (published 31 July 2025): 31,500 taxpaying estates and £6.70 billion of liabilities in 2022 to 2023, a 13% average effective rate, and 4.62% of deaths incurring IHT (gov.uk).
  • gov.uk, Inheritance Tax: nil-rate band £325,000, residence nil-rate band up to £175,000, up to £1,000,000 per couple, frozen to the end of 2030-31 (gov.uk/inheritance-tax and gov.uk thresholds), as at July 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How many millionaires are there in the UK?

The UBS Global Wealth Report 2026 estimates the UK held more than 2 million US-dollar millionaires as at the end of 2025 (ubs.com, 2026, subject to change). This is a modelled private-sector estimate, not an official UK statistic, and it counts individuals in US dollars, so a sterling-based count would generally differ.

Does the UK government publish a millionaire count?

Not as a single headline number. The ONS measures total wealth in pounds through the Wealth and Assets Survey and publishes distributions rather than a "millionaire" tally (ONS, Apr 2020 to Mar 2022, subject to change). Any precise UK millionaire count you see generally comes from a private report using its own method.

What wealth puts a household in the top 10% in Great Britain?

ONS estimates suggest a household needed total wealth of £1,200,500 or more to sit in the wealthiest 10% in Great Britain in April 2020 to March 2022, and £3,121,500 or more for the wealthiest 1% (ONS, published January 2025, subject to change). Total wealth here includes property, pensions, savings and physical assets.

Do millionaires always pay inheritance tax?

No. In 2022 to 2023, only 31,500 UK estates were taxpaying for inheritance tax, about 4.62% of deaths (HMRC, published July 2025, subject to change). Allowances such as the £325,000 nil-rate band and spouse exemptions mean many seven-figure estates fall outside the tax (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change).

Are these figures the same across Scotland and Northern Ireland?

Not exactly. The ONS wealth figures cover Great Britain, so they exclude Northern Ireland (ONS, subject to change). Inheritance tax is UK-wide, but succession law differs: Scotland has its own rules and uses confirmation rather than probate, so outcomes there can vary.

Why do millionaire estimates vary so much?

Estimates differ because they use different definitions: US dollars versus pounds, per person versus per household, and whether pensions and property are counted. A currency swing alone can move a US-dollar count. This is why the UBS headcount and the ONS pound-based distributions are best read side by side rather than merged (ONS, subject to change).

About Fairchild Oldfield

The Fairchild Oldfield team brings together estate planning, tax, independent financial advice and client care, working with families across England and Wales.

Fairchild Oldfield are estate planning specialists and will writers, not a firm of solicitors. This article is general information based on practical experience and published statistics, not legal, tax or financial advice.

Important: This article is general information only and is not legal, tax or financial advice. Reading it does not create a professional relationship. It is based on the law of England and Wales, and other UK jurisdictions may differ. Statistics are drawn from the named sources at the dates shown, and figures and rules are current as at July 2026 and are subject to change. Before acting, many people choose to seek advice from a suitably qualified professional, such as a solicitor, a STEP practitioner, an accountant, or an FCA-authorised financial adviser, who can consider individual circumstances.

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