DENVER (KDVR) – Are you part of the top 1%? Well, it depends heavily on which state you live in, according to a new study by GoBankingRates.
The study used Internal Revenue Service data from 2021 and 2022 to determine the top 1% threshold was for all states. The amounts were adjusted for inflation.
Five states — Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, Washington and New Jersey — all require people to earn $1 million or more to be considered part of the 1%.
The 10 states with the highest incomes needed to be in the 1% of earners:
- Connecticut – $1,192,947
- Massachusetts – $1,152,992
- California – $1,072,248
- Washington – $1,024,599
- New Jersey – $1,010,101
- New York – $999,747
- Colorado – $896,273
- Florida – $882,302
- Wyoming – $872,896
- New Hampshire – $839,742
West Virginia had the lowest income needed to be part of its 1%, at $435,302 a year. That’s less than half of the amount required in all but nine of the top 10 states.
The 10 states with the lowest threshold to the 1% club:
41. Ohio – $601,685
42. Iowa – $591,921
43. Alabama – $577,017
44. Indiana – $572,403
45. Oklahoma – $559,981
46. Arkansas – $550,469
47. Kentucky – $532,013
48. New Mexico – $493,013
49. Mississippi – $456,309
50. West Virginia – $435,302
GoBankingRates used the most recent IRS tax return data (2021 data pulled from 2022 returns) when calculating each state’s figures. More information is available in the study.
How does the 1% compare to everyone else?
The U.S. Census Bureau found that the real median household income in 2022 was $74,580. Recent data shows that that number fluctuates dramatically, evidenced by the states on either end of the spectrum, however.
For a family with one earner, the median is $51,554 in Mississippi, compared to $85,933 in the District of Columbia.