$150K Income Is 'Lower Middle Class' In These CA Cities (2024)

FAQs

Is 150K considered lower middle class? ›

However, new GOBankingRates research shows that in some major U.S. cities, an annual income of $150,000 is only enough to qualify as “lower middle class.” This is especially pronounced in two Northern California cities and Arlington, Virginia.

Economic Class as Defined by Income in California

By Pew's standard, a California household has to earn between $61,270 and $183,810 to join the state's middle class. Those earning $61,269 or less are lower-middle class and $183,811 or more buys you a ticket to the upper-middle class.

To further illustrate this point, the Pew Research's income calculator states that a $150K salary puts you in the “upper income” tier even in high-cost areas like California, Hawaii, and the District of Columbia.

According to the Census Bureau's Income in the United States: 2022 report, the median household income is $74,580 (a 2.3% decline from 2021), while household income levels for each class level are as follows: Lower class: less than or equal to $30,000. Lower-middle class: $30,001 – $58,020.

This middle-class median household income in the U.S. in 2022 was reportedly $74,580. Generally, though, the upper class is viewed to be one notch above the upper middle class, which includes households earning an income of roughly $150,000 to $250,000.

Earning $150,000 puts you well above the average salary in the U.S — over double the median income, in fact, according to Census data. With this salary, you can likely afford a bigger home than most, and likely in a more desirable location.

With New Jersey ranking as the top state to make the most money to be considered middle class, other states ranking in the top five requiring salaries exceeding $50,000 to be in this category include Maryland ($63,321) and Massachusetts ($62,986), Hawaii ($61,633) and California ($61,028).

What salary do you need to live comfortably in California? ›

While California ranks third-most expensive for a single adult to live comfortably at $113,652, it only ranks fifth-most expensive for two working adults raising two children. The total family income should be at least $276,724 in the latter case.

130K Salary in California. $127,299 is the 75th percentile. Salaries above this are outliers. $140,029 is the 90th percentile.

You also need an annual household salary of at least $50,000 to be considered middle class in 17 other states, including California, New York, Oregon, Washington, Utah and Hawaii. In California, the difference is $122,000, from a salary of $61,028 on the lower end to $183,102 on the upper end.

But data from the U.S. Census Bureau cites a different number as the average salary: just under $75,000. What does this all mean? By the Census data, it means that if you earn between $50,000 and $150,000 a year, you are considered middle class.

In California, the middle class income range for 2022 was $61,270 to $183,810.

What percentage of Americans make over $150,000 per year? Research from Statista indicates that 21.1% of workers in the U.S. make over $150,000 per year.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. With a $150,000 annual salary, you could potentially afford a house priced between $450,000 to $750,000 or even more, depending on your financial situation, credit score, and current market conditions.

According to the study, a middle-class income averages between $52,000 and $155,000 in a large U.S. city.

An annual income of $150,000 is only enough to qualify as “lower middle class.” : r/jobs.