Abstract The assets agenda or asset‐based welfare has provoked much interest in recent times. This approach insists that the stock of assets that a person owns is an important element of well‐being. The assets agenda is not a unified body of thought. However, there is a common failure to distinguish between these different parts, and this clouds rather than clarifies debates. This article seeks to add analytical clarity to current debates about asset‐based welfare. I distinguish between social policy and citizenship, and consider their implications for social policy. This discussion is important because analytical clarity is a precondition for a balanced assessment of asset‐based welfare.