Hurun India Wealth Report and Luxury Consumer Survey 2025

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India's Wealth Surge: What the Report Really Tells Us

According to the Hurun India Wealth Report 2025, the country almost doubled its Dollar millionaire count in four years. From 458,000 households in 2021 to 871,700 in 2025 (0.31% of all Indian households), representing a 90% leap. But before you start picturing the nation's millionaires sipping champagne, the reality is far more nuanced, and frankly, more interesting.

The Millionaire Mirage

Here's the uncomfortable truth: while India minted 413,700 new $millionaire households since 2021, becoming a billionaire remains statistically impossible. The Hurun data shows that of all the households that crossed the $1 million mark back in 2017, only 0.01% made it to billionaire status. Even reaching ultra-high-net-worth status (₹100 crore+) happened for just 5% of 2017's millionaires.

What we're witnessing isn't so much a wealth revolution as a wealth base expansion. The pyramid is growing wider at the bottom, but the climb to the top remains brutally steep. This isn't necessarily bad, it suggests India is creating broad-based prosperity rather than just minting oligarchs, but it does puncture the myth that millionaire status is a stepping stone to exponential wealth.

The Geography of Money

Maharashtra's dominance is almost absurd. With 178,600 millionaire households (20% of India's total millionaire households) and Mumbai alone accounting for 142,000 of those, the state isn't just leading; it's in a different league. Its GSDP grew 55% to ₹40.5 lakh crore, roughly the size of Norway's entire economy.

But the real story is happening in the tier-two wealth centers. Telangana saw 138% growth in millionaire households, the highest in the top ten states, powered by Hyderabad's pharma and tech boom. Cities like Gurugram (10,100 millionaire households) and Surat (5,700) are emerging as concentrated wealth pockets, proving that fortune-building isn't confined to the traditional metros anymore.

The income tax-to-GSDP ratio reveals something crucial about economic formalization. Maharashtra (19%) and Delhi (18%) convert nearly a fifth of their economic output into direct tax revenue—a sign of organized, high-income sectors. Compare that to Uttar Pradesh (1.89%) or Bihar (0.78%), where informal economies dominate. The gap isn't just about wealth; it's about the structure of wealth creation.

The China Comparison Nobody Wants to Discuss

China has 5.1 million affluent households compared to India's 871,700 - nearly 6× more. At the ultra-high-net-worth level, China's lead narrows to 2×, but it's still substantial. However, the report's projection is striking: if India's GDP doubles over the next decade (a realistic scenario), millionaire households could reach 1.7–2 million, with UHNWIs doubling to around 130,000.

The crucial difference? China's wealth was built on manufacturing and infrastructure; India's is being built on services, technology, and entrepreneurship. Demographics also tilt in India's favor with its workforce still expanding. The gap isn't insurmountable; it's a head start India can close with sustained growth.

What India's Rich Actually Want

The luxury consumer survey polling 150 millionaires with an average age of 32 dismantles several stereotypes.

UPI apps (35%) have overtaken cards and cash as the preferred payment method. Let that sink in: India's wealthy are more comfortable with digital wallets than credit cards, a pattern you won't find among American or European millionaires.

Their investment philosophy? Surprisingly cautious. Only 17% identify as risk-takers, while 31% describe themselves as "not sure" about their strategy. This suggests that many of India's new millionaires are first-generation wealth creators still figuring out how to preserve and grow their money. The fact that 60% report annual household consumption under ₹1 crore ($113k) reinforces this, these aren't trust-fund heirs; they're bootstrap entrepreneurs.

Travel tops hobby preferences (45%) and Yoga leads fitness activities (27%). When asked what defines social responsibility, 30% said "paying taxes", higher than charity (17%). There's a pragmatic, almost middle-class sensibility here that contradicts the flashy luxury stereotype.

What This Means for You

If you're in the aspirational middle class, the takeaway isn't discouraging, it's clarifying. Crossing ₹8.5 crore in net worth is increasingly achievable through equity investing, entrepreneurship, or high-income professions. But expecting that to compound into ₹100 crore without building scalable enterprises or making concentrated bets is wishful thinking.

For businesses, the data screams opportunity. With millionaire households projected to double by 2035, sectors catering to affluent consumers, wealth management, premium healthcare, luxury travel, education, will see explosive demand. The shift from cash to digital, the preference for experiences over goods, and the focus on health and education signal where smart money should flow.

India isn't just creating wealth. It's creating a new class of pragmatic, digitally native, cautiously optimistic millionaires who still remember what it's like not to be rich.