Median Income by US state Median household income in the US was $81,604 in 2024, but it varies widely from state to state. The highest-earning group ($92,000 to $110,000) is concentrated along the Northeast corridor, from Virginia and Maryland up to Massachusetts and New Hampshire, along with the West Coast, Colorado, Utah, Alaska and Hawaii. Washington DC tops the list at $109,707, with Massachusetts the highest state at $104,828. At the other end, the lowestearning group ($59,000 to $72,000) is mostly in the South and parts of the Midwest, with Mississippi lowest at $59,127. That’s a gap of roughly $50,000 between the top and bottom of the map, which partly reflects differences in living costs as well as the types of industry each state relies on. Hospitality and catering matter most in tourism-driven states: in Nevada, the sector’s share of jobs is more than twice the national average, and in Hawaii nearly twice, with Wyoming, Montana and Florida also well above average. Nationwide, food preparation and serving alone account for almost 9% of all US jobs (around 13.8 million people), making it one of the country’s largest employers. Range*
Tier
States DC, MA, NJ, MD, HI, CA, NH, WA, CO, UT, CT, AK, VA
Highest income area
$92,000 – $110,000
Above average income area
$78,000 – $88,000
DE, MN, NY, OR, RI, IL, VT, AZ, ID, NV, GA, TX, ND
Median income area
$72,000 – $78,000
FL, PA, WI, SD, ME, NE, WY, KS, IA, MT, NC, MI, SC
Lowest income area
$60,000 – $72,000
OH, TN, IN, MO, NM, AL, OK, KY, AR, LA, WV, MS
* Median incomes (before tax) from the United States Census Bureau