In 2022, San Francisco had the highest median household income of cities ranking within the top 25 in terms of population, with a median household income in of 136,692 U.S. dollars. In that year, San Jose in California was ranked second, and Seattle, Washington third.

Following a fall after the great recession, median household income in the United States has been increasing in recent years. As of 2022, median household income by state was highest in Maryland, Washington, D.C., Utah, and Massachusetts. It was lowest in Mississippi, West Virginia, and Arkansas. Families with an annual income of 25,000 and 49,999 U.S. dollars made up the largest income bracket in America, with about 25.26 million households.

Data on median household income can be compared to statistics on personal income in the U.S. released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Personal income rose to around 21.8 trillion U.S. dollars in 2022, the highest value recorded. Personal income is a measure of the total income received by persons from all sources, while median household income is “the amount with divides the income distribution into two equal groups,” according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Half of the population in question lives above median income and half lives below. Though total personal income has increased in recent years, this wealth is not distributed throughout the population. In practical terms, income of most households has decreased. One additional statistic illustrates this disparity: for the lowest quintile of workers, mean household income has remained more or less steady for the past decade at about 13 to 16 thousand constant U.S. dollars annually. Meanwhile, income for the top five percent of workers has actually risen from about 285,000 U.S. dollars in 1990 to about 499,900 U.S. dollars in 2020.

This annual study provides selected income and tax items classified by State, ZIP Code, and the size of adjusted gross income. These data include the number of returns, which approximates the number of households; the number of personal exemptions, which approximates the population; adjusted gross income; wages and salaries; dividends before exclusion; and interest received. Data are based who reported on U.S. Individual Income Tax Returns (Forms 1040) filed with the IRS. SOI collects these data as part of its Individual Income Tax Return (Form 1040) Statistics program, Data by Geographic Areas, ZIP Code Data.

This statistic shows the total personal income in the United States from 1990 to 2023. The data are in current U.S. dollars not adjusted for inflation or deflation. According to the BEA, personal income is the income that is received by persons from all sources. It is calculated as the sum of wage and salary disbursements, supplements to wages and salaries, proprietors' income with inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments, rental income of persons with capital consumption adjustment, personal dividend income, personal interest income, and personal current transfer receipts, less contributions for government social insurance. Personal income increased to about 23 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023.Personal income Personal income in the United States has risen steadily over the last decades from 5.07 trillion U.S. dollars in 1991 to 23 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. Personal income includes all earnings including wages, investments, and other sources. Personal income also varied widely across the U.S., where those living in the District of Columbia, on the higher scale, earned an average of 96,873 U.S. dollars per capita and on the lower end of the spectrum, people in Mississippi earned 45,438 U.S. dollars per capita. In the District of Columbia, disposable income averaged some 81,193 U.S. dollars. In total, California earned the most personal income followed by Texas, receiving three trillion U.S. dollars and 1.76 trillion U.S. dollars, respectively. Income tends to vary widely between demographics in the United States. Those with higher education levels tend to earn more money. However, only 25.7 percent of persons with a disability that had a Bachelor's degree or higher were employed in 2020. The Social Security and Supplemental Security Income disability programs provide monetary benefits to the disabled and certain family members.

In 2023, California had the highest Hispanic population in the United States, with over 15.76 million people claiming Hispanic heritage. Texas, Florida, New York, and Illinois rounded out the top five states for Hispanic residents in that year. History of Hispanic people Hispanic people are those whose heritage stems from a former Spanish colony. The Spanish Empire colonized most of Central and Latin America in the 15th century, which began when Christopher Columbus arrived in the Americas in 1492. The Spanish Empire expanded its territory throughout Central America and South America, but the colonization of the United States did not include the Northeastern part of the United States. Despite the number of Hispanic people living in the United States having increased, the median income of Hispanic households has fluctuated slightly since 1990. Hispanic population in the United States Hispanic people are the second-largest ethnic group in the United States, making Spanish the second most common language spoken in the country. In 2021, about one-fifth of Hispanic households in the United States made between 50,000 to 74,999 U.S. dollars. The unemployment rate of Hispanic Americans has fluctuated significantly since 1990, but has been on the decline since 2010, with the exception of 2020 and 2021, due to the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Out of all 50 states, New York had the highest per-capita real gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, at 92,341 U.S. dollars, followed closely by Massachusetts. Mississippi had the lowest per-capita real GDP, at 41,603 U.S. dollars. While not a state, the District of Columbia had a per capita GDP of more than 210,780 U.S. dollars. What is real GDP? A country’s real GDP is a measure that shows the value of the goods and services produced by an economy and is adjusted for inflation. The real GDP of a country helps economists to see the health of a country’s economy and its standard of living. Downturns in GDP growth can indicate financial difficulties, such as the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, when the U.S. GDP decreased by 2.5 percent. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on U.S. GDP, shrinking the economy 2.8 percent. The U.S. economy rebounded in 2021, however, growing by nearly six percent. Why real GDP per capita matters Real GDP per capita takes the GDP of a country, state, or metropolitan area and divides it by the number of people in that area. Some argue that per-capita GDP is more important than the GDP of a country, as it is a good indicator of whether or not the country’s population is getting wealthier, thus increasing the standard of living in that area. The best measure of standard of living when comparing across countries is thought to be GDP per capita at purchasing power parity (PPP) which uses the prices of specific goods to compare the absolute purchasing power of a countries currency.

In the state of California, there were approximately *** million children enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP insurance plans in March 2025. Additionally, Texas, New York, and Florida all had more than *** million children enrolled in the programs. How many people are enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP? State Medicaid programs provide medical coverage to millions of Americans, including children, pregnant women, and parents. The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was introduced in 1997 to help uninsured children who were previously not eligible for Medicaid. The total number of individuals enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP was approximately **** million in May 2021, and California has the largest state program. How is income eligibility determined? The Affordable Care Act established a new methodology to assess income eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP. The adoption of the Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) methodology helped to align eligibility rules that previously varied nationwide. In general, an individual’s eligibility is now determined by their MAGI and where it falls in relation to the federal poverty level (FPL). For Medicaid and CHIP plans across all states in 2021, the median upper income eligibility level for children was *** percent of the FPL.

As of 2023, California, Texas, and New York had the largest number of active dentists working. California was ranked first with over 30 thousand active dentists. Despite having the largest number of dentists working, these states were not necessarily the states with the highest dentists to population ratio.

Dentistry within the U.S. – a supply cliff?

Recent estimates have suggested that the dentistry workforce in the U.S. is lacking by over 10,000 dentists. However, some states host a much higher number of dentists per capita. The top three states with the highest dentist density were Massachusetts, Alaska, and New Jersey. Despite variability across the United States, attractive salaries may be one way to attract more dentists to practice. In a recent survey of dental professionals, dentists that worked in non-solo private practices had some of the highest annual incomes among all dentists.

Dental access and use in the U.S.

Dental use and access are staggeringly low in the United States. However, it is recommended that all people should visit their dentist regularly for cleaning and maintenance even if they have no dental issues. One barrier to dental care can be the high costs attached to some services and the lack of dental insurance to pay for care. While a majority of those that access dental services have some form of coverage to help them pay, a significant proportion of those accessing dental services are not covered by any type of insurance. Recommendations for increasing access to dental services include targeted public health programs, better insurance options, and increasing the dental workforce within the U.S.

This graph shows the Percentage of households led by a female householder with no spouse present with own children under 18 years living in the household in the U.S. in 2021, by state. In 2021, about 4.24 percent of Californian households were single mother households with at least one child.

Additional information on single mother households and poverty in the United States

For most single mothers a constant battle persists between finding the time and energy to raise their children and the demands of working to supply an income to house and feed their families. The pressures of a single income and the high costs of childcare mean that the risk of poverty for these families is a tragic reality. Comparison of the overall United States poverty rate since 1990 with that of the poverty rate for families with a female householder shows that poverty is much more prevalent in the latter. In 2021, while the overall rate was at 11.6 percent, the rate of poverty for single mother families was 23 percent. Moreover, the degree of fluctuation tends to be lower for single female household families, suggesting the rate of poverty for these groups is less affected by economic conditions.

The sharp rise in the number of children living with a single mother or single father in the United States from 1970 to 2022 suggests more must be done to ensure that families in such situations are able to avoid poverty. Moreover, attention should also be placed on overall racial income inequality given the higher rate of poverty for Hispanic single mother families than their white or Asian counterparts.