
Key Takeaways
Median household income by state in 2024 ranged from $59.1K in Mississippi to $109.7K in Washington D.C., revealing significant regional disparities.
The top five states after the capital—Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland, Hawaii, and California—all had median household incomes above $100K, over 20% higher than the U.S. national median household income.
Across the United States, median household income by state varies widely depending on geography, industry mix, and cost of living.
This visualization maps out all 50 states by their 2024 median household income using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, the latest data available as of October 2025.
Median Household Income in the U.S. in 2024
The median household income in the U.S. was $81,604 in 2024, with the District of Columbia having the highest of any state or district at $109,707, followed by various coastal states.
High-Earning States Concentrated on the Coasts
The states with the highest household earnings are heavily concentrated along the coasts, with Colorado being the highest-earning landlocked state at ninth on the list with $97,113. Utah is the next non-coastal state with a high level of household earnings at $96,658, ranking 10th overall.
The eight coastal states ahead of Colorado and Utah all had a median household income of at least $99,000, all at least 20% above the national median household income.
These coastal states benefit from robust technology, professional services, and government sectors that tend to offer higher-paying jobs, while also often having higher costs of living.
Southern States Lag Behind the National Median Income
States in the South continue to have many of the lowest household incomes in the U.S., often trailing significantly behind the national median of $81,604.
After Mississippi at $59,127, the next two lowest-earning states were West Virginia ($60,798) and Louisiana ($60,986).
Other states below $65,000 (20% below the national median) were Arkansas and Kentucky with $62,106 and $64,526 in median household income respectively.
While these figures are significantly below the national median, they do coincide with lower housing and living costs, providing a more balanced standard of living.
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/mapped-median-household-income-by-state/