In recent years, a middle-class lifestyle has become increasingly unattainable, as recent data shows that even the 20 most populous metropolitan areas have high thresholds to be considered part of the economic group.
Take San Francisco, for example, where the annual household income requirement is about $85,000, according to the 2022 census. This was the highest salary needed to be considered middle class among the 20 most populous cities.
Close behind were the metropolises surrounding Washington DC, Seattle and Boston, where incomes of $78,000, $71,000 and $70,000 were required.
Denver and San Diego households considered middle class tied for fifth place, both requiring incomes of at least $66,000 to meet the goal.
But these figures represent the low end of the rankings: Thousands of households in the top three earning more than $200,000 are still considered middle class.
In recent years, the middle-class lifestyle has become increasingly unattainable, especially in certain cities around the country. Some metropolises, such as the one surrounding Tampa (seen here), require much less: the Florida city only requires $46,000 to make the cut.
This is because the term is primarily defined as households earning between two-thirds and twice the local median income.
In San Francisco, that’s just under $130,000, according to the Census.
Along with the Bay Area, Washington, D.C., Seattle, and Boston were the only other metropolitan areas where $200,000 wouldn’t instantly catapult you into the upper class; they all required a few thousand more to hit that mark.
Similarly, you would need $198,000 in Denver and San Diego to reach that top economic level.
Next up was another tie, this time between the metropolitan areas surrounding New York City and Minneapolis.
Despite their differences, both areas require households to earn $61,000 to achieve middle-class distinction, with a maximum income of $183,000.
The eighth highest lower-middle class income bracket was in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson Metropolitan Statistical Area, also known as Central Maryland.
The eighth-highest income for the lower middle class was in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson Metropolitan Statistical Area, also known as Central Maryland. There, households must earn just over $60,000 to be considered for the ranking.
Rounding out the top ten is none other than Los Angeles (pictured), where $58,000 will earn residents the not-so-sacred distinction of middle class.
The Boston Metro (seen here) boasted one of the highest minimum middle-class incomes: $70,000 to be exact.
There, households need to earn just over $60,000 to be considered for qualification.
Rounding out the top ten was none other than Los Angeles, where $58,000 will give its residents the distinction of being middle class.
The next 10 were the other most populous metropolitan areas in the United States, ranging in size from the relatively small Miami to Houston and the sprawling system of suburbs and cities that surround it.
Thus, the eleventh metropolitan area with the highest minimum middle-class income belonged to Atlanta, the largest metropolitan area in the US Census Bureau’s Southeast region.
There, an income of $57,000 is considered sufficient – almost $20,000 less than the actual median household income of $74,580.
The area surrounding the City of Brotherly Love ranked next, with $56,000 deemed necessary to reach middle-class status.
The 11th metro area with the highest minimum middle-class income was in the transportation hub of Atlanta, the largest metro area in the Census Bureau’s Southeast region. An income of $57,000 there is considered sufficient, nearly $20,000 less than the median household income.
Chicago, Dallas, Phoenix and the California communities near Riverside joined together to achieve a four-way tie, with a minimum middle-class income of $55,000.
Next was Houston, which required a combined salary of $50,000 per household to be considered middle class.
The last five are asking for incomes of $40,000.
These were the metropolises surrounding Detroit, Miami and Tampa, in that order, where incomes of $48,000, $48,000, $47,000, $47,000 and $46,000 are required.
As of July 2021, there were 421 metropolitan statistical areas across the United States. The 25 analyzed were the most populous.