Abstract. Using a rich consumption-savings model, we assess the contribution of economic and demographic factors to cross-sectional and life-cycle differences in the wealth of Black and White individuals. We calibrate the model to wealth profiles of White individuals and estimate forcing processes separately by race. Our model reproduces 88% of the cross-sectional mean difference and 102% of the median difference in wealth. At the bottom of the distribution, variation in employment rates account for about two-thirds of the difference. At the top, differences in earnings when employed and education together account for half, amplified by scale effects in returns to wealth.