Bach Seat

It is Labor Day in the U.S. Organized labor created the U.S. middle class. Now the middle class is being squeezed out of existence. Considerable reports that the Pew Research Center has concluded that 52% of Americans qualify as middle class. 29% in lower-income households and 19% in upper-income households.

The researchers found that today, roughly half of American households fall into the middle class, over time the middle class has been shrinking. In 1971, 61% of adults lived in middle-class households. During this time both upper and lower-income segments of the population have been growing at the expense of the middle class. Plus, the upper class has seen bigger income gains, widening the income gap.

Pew found that the highest concentrations of middle-class Americans reside in the Midwest and Northeast. Sheboygan, WI has the largest percentage of middle-class adults in the U.S., others are:

1. Sheboygan, WI – 65.2%
2. Elkhart-Goshen, IN – 64.4%
3. East Stroudsburg, PA – 63.7%
4. Ogden-Clearfield, UT – 63.1%

The areas with the highest concentration of upper-class households should not surprise anyone.

1. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA – 31.6%
2. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV – 30.6%
3. San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA – 30.4%
4. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT – 30.2%

The national average middle-class household income is $78,442 according to the Pew data. The Michigan middle-class benchmark is just over $79,000 and is placed in the middle at the 27th place nationally, between New Mexico and Maine. The Michigan middle-class household earns on average $600 more than the national average.

As for metro regions, the highest income to be middle class in the U.S. belongs to:

1. Iowa City, IA  $90,158
2. Auburn-Opelika, AL $87,363
3. Monroe, MI $87,330
4. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV  $86,645

Being middle class requires the least income in:

1. El Centro, CA $69,338
2. Merced, CA $71,319
3. Lewiston-Auburn, ME $71,612
4. Coeur d’Alene, ID $71,726

The Pew data says that in order to be middle class in Michigan the major metro-areas a household needs to have the following incomes.

1. Muskegon, MI $76,699
2. Saginaw, MI $77,731
3. Lansing-East Lansing, MI $79,522
4. Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI $80,159
5. Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI $80,166
6. Niles-Benton Harbor, MI $80,302
7. Ann Arbor, MI $80,907
8. Kalamazoo-Portage, MI $81,003
9. Jackson, MI $81,710
10. Monroe, MI $87,330

In the table below, you’ll find the median incomes for each U.S. state for a three-person middle-class household, adjusted for the cost of living in the states. The amounts vary because Pew adjusts the data to reflect the cost of living around the country. Keep in mind the this is based on 2016 income, but since inflation has been modest in recent years the exact number probably won’t have changed much.

 

How much income it takes to be middle class

Rank	State	Income
1	District of Columbia	$88,579
2	Rhode Island	$84,413
3	Maryland	$84,372
4	Alaska	$84,015
5	Massachusetts	$83,923
6	North Dakota	$83,494
7	Connecticut	$82,747
8	Minnesota	$82,173
9	New Jersey	$81,950
10	South Dakota	$81,334
11	Virginia	$81,309
12	Colorado	$81,234
13	Iowa	$81,167
14	Wisconsin	$81,053
15	Illinois	$81,010
16	New Hampshire	$80,656
17	Washington	$80,615
18	Wyoming	$80,217
19	Hawaii	$80,168
20	Ohio	$80,033
21	Delaware	$79,959
22	Pennsylvania	$79,717
23	Nebraska	$79,549
24	Kentucky	$79,216
25	Missouri	$79,189
26	Maine	$79,060
27	Michigan	$79,042
28	New Mexico	$79,012
29	Kansas	$78,971
30	Georgia	$78,961
31	Vermont	$78,877
32	Texas	$78,866
33	Montana	$78,854
34	Alabama	$78,624
35	North Carolina	$78,624
36	Oregon	$78,550
37	Nevada	$78,461
38	New York	$78,412
39	South Carolina	$78,016
40	Indiana	$77,941
41	California	$77,806
42	Oklahoma	$77,658
43	Utah	$77,575
44	Tennessee	$77,495
45	Louisiana	$77,351
46	Arizona	$76,860
47	Idaho	$76,849
48	Mississippi	$76,666
49	West Virginia	$76,629
50	Arkansas	$76,569
51	Florida	$75,414

In 2016 dollars, reflects three-person household, and adjusted for cost of living in the states. Source: Pew Research Center analysis of 2016 American Community Survey (IPUMS)

 

Related Posts

• Oxfam report: Michigan lands in the bottom half of states for workers (Michigan Advance)

 

Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.