Are you ahead of most Americans?

Good afternoon. Most people have a rough sense of how they're doing financially, but rough isn't the same as knowing. Today's issue is about trading the guesswork for a real answer.

On The Money Today:

Let's get into it.

Most people treat retirement like a math problem: hit your number, then go. But plenty of Americans who could easily afford to stop are still showing up Monday morning, while others nowhere close to their savings goal are itching to quit. Your finances are only half the equation. There's a second signal that matters just as much, and it usually shows up in the small, everyday moments long before your spreadsheet gives you permission.

Baby boomers are sitting on more collective wealth than any generation before them, and their kids have been counting on inheriting some of it. But new data shows a growing share of seniors are spending down everything before they ever pass a dime along, and healthcare is almost always the reason why.

A record share of Americans say their finances are getting worse, the worst stretch since the Great Recession. More than half now say they're living paycheck to paycheck, up sharply from just four years ago. But there's a simple gut check that shows where you actually stand, and for a lot of people, the bar turns out to be lower than they think.

The answer is: B) 54% — according to a Ramsey Solutions study, 54% of American adults say they're living paycheck to paycheck, up from 42% just four years ago. The number climbs even higher among younger generations, with 63% of millennials and 61% of Gen Z saying the same.