Canada ranks among the 20 wealthiest nations globally, but Canadians continue to lag behind Americans in average personal wealth, a new report shows.
The 2026 Global Wealth Report from Swiss bank UBS has identified Canada as the 13th wealthiest country in the world, with an average personal wealth of US$399,886 per adult. That equals roughly $567,000 in Canadian dollars.
Americans rank significantly higher than Canadians on the global scale, securing the second position with an average wealth of US$696,277 per adult. The United States came in well behind first-place Switzerland, however, where the average wealth per adult is US$910,382.
The yearly UBS Global Wealth Report created by Switzerland’s largest bank assesses wealth in U.S. dollars by analyzing financial and non-financial assets, such as real estate, after subtracting any debts.
Global personal wealth increased by 10.8 percent last year, the report found. It also indicated that 1.5 percent of the global population has assets exceeding US$1 million, while 42 percent have less than US$10,000.
The report reviewed 56 markets that represent more than 92 percent of global wealth.
North America remains the richest region worldwide, primarily due to the United States, which accounts for 35.7 percent of the personal wealth outlined in the report.
Oceania was the second-wealthiest region thanks to Australia, where the wealth of the average adult was US$616,306.
“Last year, we pointed out the existence of a split between North America and Oceania on one side of the half-million US dollar mark and the rest of the world’s regions on the other,” the report said. “This divide remains firmly in place, especially if we look at the United States and Australia individually.”
Canada continues to hold a position above the regional average of Western Europe, which stands at US$337,083 per adult, yet it remains significantly below Switzerland and six other European countries: third place Luxembourg, seventh place Denmark, ninth place Norway, 10th place Netherlands, 11th place Belgium, and 12th place Sweden.
It was also topped by fourth place Hong Kong, fifth place Australia, sixth place Singapore, and eighth place New Zealand.
The UBS report indicated that a historic number of millionaires emerged worldwide in 2025, achieving unprecedented levels in every market it monitors.
“Nearly one million new millionaires were created in 2025, with the United States accounting for almost half of this growth, with more than 1,200 new millionaires emerging every day,” the report authors wrote. “Eastern Europe led in percentage growth, while Asia-Pacific and Western Europe also saw significant increases.”
