--- title: Young Workers Say They Need a $120K Salary to Feel Like They’ve ‘Made It’ description: Whether it's youthful idealism or plain-old ambition, millennial and Gen Z workers have lofty salary expectations. authors: - name: Mary Ellen Cagnassola role: Reporter url: https://money.com/author/mary-ellen-cagnassola/ bio: Mary Ellen (M.E.) Cagnassola is a former reporter at Money, where she covered Social Security, retirement, housing, and employment. Her work reflects her commitment to service and equity in consumer finance. education: Rutgers University, BA Journalism at_money_since: 2021 articles: 205 covers: - Personal Finance - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Pets - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes former_staff: true editors: - name: Kristen Bahler role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/kristen-bahler/ bio: Kristen Bahler has spent more than a decade turning culture, work and consumer spending trends into conversation-driving stories. Today, she leads Money's sponsored content channel and reader-favorite franchises like Best Places to Live and Best Places to Travel. education: Northeastern University, MA Journalism at_money_since: 2016 articles: 52 covers: - Personal Finance - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Pets - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology social: - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristen-bahler/ published: '2023-05-12T16:22:52.000Z' modified: '2024-01-10T12:59:03.000Z' section: Personal Finance tags: - News word_count: 330 canonical: https://money.com/young-worker-salary-expectations/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Illustration depicting the perfect salary of $120k](https://img.money.com/2023/05/News-GenZ-Millennials-120K-Feel-Successful.jpg?crop=0px%2C183px%2C2880px%2C1620px&quality=85) How much pay would it take to make a [Gen Z-er](https://money.com/gen-z-401k-enrollment-rate/) or [millennial](https://money.com/millennials-rent-forever-never-own-home/) feel successful? New analysis says it’s much more than what the average American household makes yearly. Call it youthful idealism or plain-old ambition, [a study](https://www.skynova.com/blog/job-trends-for-young-adults) from the invoicing solutions company Skynova found that workers around the ages 21 to 42 have lofty salary expectations. Most aren’t content with what they’re making now, and on average, they think it will take at least $121,553 annually to feel like they’ve finally "made it." Skynova analyzed state-by-state salary data and survey responses from more than 1,000 millennial and Gen Z workers. Here's what the company found. Annual average salaries for the most lucrative jobs for millennials and Gen-Zers aged 22 to 35 range from about $100,000 to $150,000. Lawyers top the list, according to Skynova, but tech and healthcare jobs dominate the ranking. 1. Lawyers: $149,646 2. Securities, commodities, financial services and sales agents: $134,029 3. Web developers: $120,595 4. Architectural and engineering managers: $115,875 5. Software developers: $113,066 6. Public relations and fundraising managers: $111,071 7. Physician assistants: $110,986 8. Other physicians: $110,130 9. Pharmacists: $105,555 10. 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