Median household income by tier U.S. 2020 | Statista (2024)

FAQs

What percentage of U.S. households have over 100k income? ›

The U.S. Census Bureau found that 37.1% of U.S. households earned at least $100,000 in 2022.

A $200,000 household income is more than most people earn across the U.S. In fact, just 12% of U.S. households earn $200,000 or more annually, according to Census Bureau data.

The difference between perception and facts is even more pronounced when looking at households with an annual income of more than $500,000. While the median weighted responses from survey participants suggest that one-fifth of U.S. households belong to that bracket, it's actually the oft-cited top 1%.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, only about 6% of Americans earn an annual salary of $100,000 or more. That amounts to around 8 million households crossing into 6-figure territory.

Annual income often comes in rounded numbers, as seen in the spikes sticking out at each $10,000. More round numbers at the $150,000 and $200,000 marks. In 2020, about 90% of employed people made less than $125,000 in total income. About 2% of employed people made $300,000 or more in total income.

Upper-middle class: $94,001 – $153,000. Upper class: greater than $153,000.

The personal finance site defines "middle class" as households with an annual income that is two-thirds to double a state's median income. In two states — Maryland and New Jersey — the high end of the middle-class income range edges close to $200,000.

$250,000 is the 75th percentile. Salaries above this are outliers. $291,500 is the 90th percentile.

As of Jun 11, 2024, the average annual pay for the Upper Class jobs category in the United States is $59,699 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $28.70 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,148/week or $4,974/month.

Based on that figure, an annual income of $500,000 or more would make you rich. The Economic Policy Institute uses a different baseline to determine who constitutes the top 1% and the top 5%. For 2021, you're in the top 1% if you earn $819,324 or more each year. The top 5% of income earners make $335,891 per year.

What is a good salary in the USA? ›

With the annual inflation rate for 2023 at 3.4% for the year — up from 3.1% previously — salaries aren't keeping up. A Smart Asset report based on MIT's Living Wage data found that the average salary required to live comfortably in the U.S. is $68,499 after taxes.

How much do you need to earn to be in the top 1% income bracket? To be in the top 1% of earners, you're looking at an average annual income of $819,324. The top 0.1% of Americans earn an average of $3,312,693.

With a $500,000+ income, you are considered rich, wherever you live! According to the IRS, any household who makes over $500,000 a year in 2023 is considered a top 1% income earner. Of course, some parts of the country require a higher income level to be in the top 1% income, e.g. Connecticut at $580,000.

What Percent of America Makes Six Figures? When you remove demographics such as infants, students, and stay-at-home spouses and focus only on full-time workers, around 18% of all earners in the US make at least six figures. Conversely, the median American household income in 2023 was approximately $44,225.

According to this Income Percentile Calculator for the United States an individual $90,000 income (not household) is in the 78th percentile. So 22% make $90K or above. Per that same article the average individual income was $66,755.25 in 2022.