Richest States in America by Median Household Income
Published April 17, 2026 · Census ACS 2023
The wealthiest US states cluster in the Northeast and along the Pacific coast. Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, and California consistently top household income rankings, driven by professional-service economies around Washington, New York, Boston, and San Francisco.
Top 20 States by Median Household Income
| # | State | Median Income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $106,287 |
| 2 | Maryland | $101,652 |
| 3 | Massachusetts | $101,341 |
| 4 | New Jersey | $101,050 |
| 5 | Hawaii | $98,317 |
| 6 | California | $96,334 |
| 7 | New Hampshire | $95,628 |
| 8 | Washington | $94,952 |
| 9 | Connecticut | $93,760 |
| 10 | Colorado | $92,470 |
| 11 | Utah | $91,750 |
| 12 | Virginia | $90,974 |
| 13 | Alaska | $89,336 |
| 14 | Minnesota | $87,556 |
| 15 | Rhode Island | $86,372 |
| 16 | New York | $84,578 |
| 17 | Delaware | $82,855 |
| 18 | Illinois | $81,702 |
| 19 | Oregon | $80,426 |
| 20 | Vermont | $78,024 |
What Drives State Income
The richest states share three features. First, they host major metropolitan areas with concentrations of professional services, finance, technology, and government. Second, their populations are more educated on average, bachelor's degree rates above 40% are typical for top-10 income states. Third, they have smaller rural economies pulling down the median.
Poorer states tend to be rural, with fewer high-paying industries and lower education rates. Mississippi, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Louisiana consistently occupy the bottom of the rankings, a pattern that has been remarkably stable for decades.
Income vs. Cost of Living
Median income rankings do not adjust for cost of living. A $95,000 household income in Mississippi likely affords a larger home and higher disposable income than the same nominal income in California, where housing consumes a much larger share of take-home pay. The Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes regional price parities that can be used to compare real purchasing power across states.
Median vs. Mean Income
Because extreme high earners pull the average upward, mean household income is typically 30-40% higher than median. The median is the better indicator of what a typical household looks like. See per-state profiles like states by mean income for the alternative ranking.
Related
Compare income against the cheapest states to live in. See states with the highest and lowest poverty rates. For the full ranking, visit states by median household income.
Frequently Asked Questions
District of Columbia has the highest median household income of any US state at $106,287 per year.
Both states benefit from proximity to major metropolitan areas, Washington DC and New York City respectively, that concentrate high-paying professional, financial, and government jobs. They also have relatively few rural, low-income census tracts compared with larger states.
Not necessarily. Median income is about the middle household, not the average. It must also be read against cost of living. A $100,000 median income in Mississippi buys very different housing and services than the same income in the Bay Area.
The Census Bureau American Community Survey 2023 5-Year estimates publish median household income for every state. It represents the midpoint of all household incomes, where half earn more and half earn less, pooled across five years of survey responses.
Median household income from the American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Figures are not adjusted for cost of living or regional price differences.