Income in the United States
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Income in the United States is measured by the various federal agencies including the Internal Revenue Service, Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Commerce, and the US Census Bureau. Additionally, various agencies, including the Congressional Budget Office compile reports on income statistics. The primary classifications are by household or individual. The top quintile in personal income in 2022 was $117,162[2] (included in the chart below). The differences between household and personal income are considerable, since 61% of households now have two or more income earners.[3] Median personal income in 2020 was $56,287 for workers with full-time employment.[4]
| All workers | Full-time workers | |
|---|---|---|
| All | ||
| Men | ||
| Women |
This difference becomes very apparent when comparing the percentage of households with six figure incomes to that of individuals. Overall, including all households/individuals regardless of employment status, the median household income was $67,521 in 2020 while the median personal income (including all individuals aged 15 and over, regardless of employment status) was $35,805.[5][6]
While wages for women have increased greatly, median earnings of male wage earners have remained stagnant since the late 1970s.[7][8] Household income, however, has risen due to the increasing number of households with more than one income earner and women's increased presence in the labor force.[9]
Income minimum by percentile
Note: The minimums in the table are minimums neither for household nor for individual incomes, but rather for the Adjusted Gross Incomes from individual tax returns, excluding returns from dependents (persons who can be claimed as dependents on another person's or couple's tax return). Since these returns include those that are for married couples filing jointly, some of them will have incomes that are greater than the individual incomes. And since the returns include those that are for persons who are married but filing separately, and since the incomes on the returns do not include the incomes of dependents, some of them will have incomes that are lower than the incomes of the households of whom the filer is a member. Therefore, the minimums in the table are in between what the minimums would be for individual incomes and what they would be for household incomes.
Source: Internal Revenue Service[2]
| Year | Top 0.001% | Top 0.01% | Top 0.10% | Top 1% | Top 2% | Top 3% | Top 4% | Top 5% | Top 10% | Top 20% | Top 25% | Top 30% | Top 40% | Top 50% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | $31,331,335 | $6,869,952 | $1,393,718 | $306,635 | $207,592 | $167,788 | $145,667 | $132,082 | $96,151 | $67,818 | $59,026 | $51,863 | $40,293 | $31,418 |
| 2002 | $25,921,482 | $5,891,214 | $1,245,352 | $296,194 | $200,654 | $164,409 | $144,575 | $130,750 | $95,699 | $67,928 | $59,066 | $51,721 | $40,073 | $31,299 |
| 2003 | $28,489,160 | $6,386,149 | $1,317,088 | $305,939 | $205,565 | $168,248 | $147,132 | $133,741 | $97,470 | $69,304 | $59,896 | $52,353 | $40,383 | $31,447 |
| 2004 | $38,780,500 | $8,455,107 | $1,617,918 | $339,993 | $224,320 | $181,127 | $156,665 | $140,758 | $101,838 | $72,069 | $62,794 | $54,765 | $42,081 | $32,622 |
| 2005 | $50,796,495 | $10,738,867 | $1,938,175 | $379,261 | $245,392 | $194,726 | $167,281 | $149,216 | $106,864 | $74,790 | $64,821 | $56,583 | $43,361 | $33,484 |
| 2006 | $54,665,360 | $11,649,460 | $2,124,625 | $402,603 | $258,800 | $205,835 | $176,455 | $157,390 | $112,016 | $77,776 | $67,291 | $58,505 | $44,748 | $34,417 |
| 2007 | $62,955,875 | $12,747,384 | $2,251,017 | $426,439 | $270,440 | $214,832 | $184,473 | $164,883 | $116,396 | $80,723 | $69,559 | $60,617 | $46,200 | $35,541 |
| 2008 | $49,546,782 | $10,097,827 | $1,867,652 | $392,513 | $260,381 | $209,750 | $181,624 | $163,512 | $116,813 | $80,886 | $69,813 | $60,535 | $46,120 | $35,340 |
| 2009 | $34,381,494 | $7,206,540 | $1,469,393 | $351,968 | $243,096 | $198,731 | $174,432 | $157,342 | $114,181 | $79,237 | $68,216 | $58,876 | $44,529 | $34,156 |
| 2010 | $45,039,369 | $8,762,618 | $1,634,386 | $369,691 | $252,785 | $205,942 | $179,023 | $161,579 | $116,623 | $80,462 | $69,126 | $59,512 | $44,895 | $34,338 |
| 2011 | $41,965,258 | $8,830,028 | $1,717,675 | $388,905 | $262,933 | $213,441 | $185,812 | $167,728 | $120,136 | $82,241 | $70,492 | $60,789 | $45,722 | $34,823 |
| 2012 | $62,068,187 | $12,104,014 | $2,161,175 | $434,682 | $285,908 | $227,923 | $196,416 | $175,817 | $125,195 | $85,440 | $73,354 | $63,222 | $47,475 | $36,055 |
| 2013 | $45,097,112 | $9,460,540 | $1,860,848 | $428,713 | $287,018 | $231,507 | $200,472 | $179,760 | $127,695 | $87,434 | $74,955 | $64,650 | $48,463 | $36,841 |
| 2014 | $56,981,718 | $11,407,987 | $2,136,762 | $465,626 | $306,650 | $245,902 | $211,261 | $188,996 | $133,445 | $90,606 | $77,714 | $66,868 | $50,083 | $38,173 |
| 2015 | $59,380,503 | $11,930,649 | $2,220,264 | $480,930 | $316,913 | $253,979 | $218,911 | $195,778 | $138,031 | $93,212 | $79,655 | $68,632 | $51,571 | $39,275 |
| 2016 | $53,052,900 | $10,963,921 | $2,124,117 | $480,804 | $319,796 | $256,673 | $221,381 | $197,651 | $139,713 | $94,620 | $80,921 | $69,581 | $52,529 | $40,078 |
| 2017 | $63,430,119 | $12,899,070 | $2,374,937 | $515,371 | $339,478 | $271,182 | $232,955 | $208,053 | $145,135 | $97,870 | $83,682 | $72,268 | $54,672 | $41,740 |
| 2018 | $68,934,261 | $13,576,286 | $2,514,209 | $540,009 | $359,368 | $286,106 | $245,050 | $217,913 | $151,935 | $101,765 | $87,044 | $75,083 | $57,092 | $43,614 |
| 2019 | $60,658,598 | $12,623,539 | $2,458,432 | $546,434 | $364,693 | $291,384 | $249,320 | $221,572 | $154,589 | $103,012 | $87,917 | $75,991 | $57,685 | $44,269 |
| 2020 | $77,008,517 | $14,757,246 | $2,614,565 | $548,336 | $366,358 | $290,860 | $248,513 | $220,521 | $152,321 | $100,723 | $85,853 | $73,572 | $55,231 | $42,184 |
| 2021 | $118,014,696 | $22,756,244 | $3,775,593 | $682,577 | $438,779 | $342,107 | $287,682 | $252,840 | $169,800 | $110,805 | $94,440 | $81,227 | $61,108 | $46,637 |
| 2022 | $85,464,888 | $17,855,123 | $3,271,387 | $663,164 | $438,918 | $349,616 | $296,859 | $261,591 | $178,611 | $117,162 | $99,857 | $85,961 | $65,388 | $50,339 |
Demographic summary
| Type of household | Race and Hispanic origin | Region | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All households | Family households |
Nonfamily households |
Asian | Non-Hispanic White | Hispanic (of any race) |
Black | Northeast | Midwest | South | West |
| $70,784 | $91,162 | $41,797 | $101,418 | $77,999 | $57,981 | $48,297 | $77,422 | $71,129 | $63,368 | $79,430 |
| Age of Householder | Nativity of Householder | Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Status | Educational Attainment of Householder* | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 65 years | 65 years and older | Native-born | Foreign-born | Inside MSA | Outside MSA | No high school diploma | High school, no college | Some college | Bachelor's degree or higher |
| $80,734 | $47,620 | $71,522 | $66,043 | $73,823 | $53,750 | $30,378 | $50,401 | $64,378 | $115,456 |
| *Householders aged 25 and older. In 2021, the median household income for this group was $72,046. | |||||||||
| Total workers | Full-Time, year-round workers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Both sexes | Male | Female | Both sexes | Male | Female |
| $45,470 | $50,983 | $39,201 | $56,473 | $61,180 | $51,226 |
| Measure | Overall | Less than 9th grade | Some High School | High school graduate | Some college | Associate's degree | Bachelor's degree or higher | Bachelor's degree | Master's degree | Professional degree | Doctorate degree |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $46,985 | $25,162 | $26,092 | $34,540 | $39,362 | $42,391 | $66,423 | $60,705 | $71,851 | $102,741 | $101,526 |
| Male, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $52,298 | $30,089 | $31,097 | $40,852 | $47,706 | $52,450 | $80,192 | $71,666 | $91,141 | $126,584 | $121,956 |
| Female, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $40,392 | $18,588 | $19,504 | $27,320 | $31,837 | $36,298 | $57,355 | $51,154 | $62,522 | $92,780 | $85,551 |
| Persons, age 25+, employed full-time | $59,371 | $33,945 | $34,897 | $42,417 | $50,640 | $52,285 | $77,105 | $71,283 | $82,183 | $130,466 | $119,552 |
| Household | $69,228 | $29,609 | $29,520 | $47,405 | $60,392 | $68,769 | $106,936 | $100,128 | $114,900 | $151,560 | $142,493 |
| *Total work experience | |||||||||||
| 10th percentile | 20th percentile | 30th percentile | 40th percentile | 50th percentile | 60th percentile | 70th percentile | 80th percentile | 90th percentile | 95th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ≤ $15,700 | ≤ $28,000 | ≤ $40,500 | ≤ $55,000 | $70,800 | ≤ $89,700 | ≤ $113,200 | ≤ $149,100 | ≤ $212,100 | ≤ $286,300 |
| Source: US Census Bureau, 2021; income statistics for the year 2021 | |||||||||
