Best and Worst States for America’s Middle Class
Since the 1970s, the American middle class has been shrinking. According to the Pew Research Center, the percentage of middle class adults in middle-class households dropped pretty steeply from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2021. And, the wealth gap between higher-income households and middle-income Americans continues to widen.
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You're considered middle class if your family earns between $35,000 and $99,999 per year. GOBankingRates calculated that range based on the U.S. median household income of $69,021, per the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. To make greater financial gains, it's important for America's middle class to successfully manage daily living expenses while investing for the future. However, depending on where you live, rising costs can quickly eat up your paycheck -- making it that much harder to save money and build wealth.
To find the best and worst states for the middle class, GOBankingRates analyzed a variety of factors spanning the top concerns for middle-income Americans:
Income: The study determined the average change in the proportion of households earning the middle income, which indicates whether the middle class is growing or shrinking in each state. In 20 states, the middle class is expanding.
Education: This includes the high school graduation rate, in-state college tuition and the five-year change in tuition costs in every state. Surprisingly, a handful of states saw tuition costs decrease over time.
Housing: GOBankingRates compiled the median home list price, five-year change in home values, mortgage costs, homeownership rate and property tax rate for each state. There are still 15 states where you can buy an average home for less than $200,000.
If your family earns the middle income, it's much easier to thrive if you live in a state that allows you to keep a bigger chunk of each paycheck. Unfortunately, many families live in states where the middle income falls short, putting goals like homeownership and student loan debt reduction out of reach -- a reality for many middle-class Americans. Keep reading to learn more about the best and worst states for the middle class, ranked from worst to first.
50. Hawaii
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,999
Median home list price: $956,094
Homeownership rate: 60%
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49. California
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,249
Median home list price: $728,629
Homeownership rate: 56.6%
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48. Massachusetts
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,396
Median home list price: $561,403
Homeownership rate: 62.1%
47. Oregon
High school graduation rate: 80%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,881
Median home list price: $479,558
Homeownership rate: 63.6%
46. Washington
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,125
Median home list price: $565,442
Homeownership rate: 68.1%
45. Colorado
High school graduation rate: 81%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,103
Median home list price:$541,186
Homeownership rate: 69.7%
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44. Connecticut
High school graduation rate: 89%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,612
Median home list price: $371,718
Homeownership rate: 68.5%
43. New Jersey
High school graduation rate: 91%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,443
Median home list price: $463,319
Homeownership rate: 64.5%
42. Rhode Island
High school graduation rate: 84%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,572
Median home list price: $413,842
Homeownership rate: 66.4%
41. Alaska
High school graduation rate: 80%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,987
Median home list price: $352,479
Homeownership rate: 66.1%
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40. New York
High school graduation rate: 83%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,556
Median home list price: $397,093
Homeownership rate: 53.6%
39. New Hampshire
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $17,025
Median home list price: $430,757
Homeownership rate: 74.5%
38. Virginia
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,576
Median home list price: $355,204
Homeownership rate: 66.8%
37. Maryland
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,562
Median home list price: $392,172
Homeownership rate: 70.1%
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36. Nevada
High school graduation rate: 84%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,586
Median home list price: $422,792
Homeownership rate: 62.3%
35. Vermont
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $17,651
Median home list price: $342,384
Homeownership rate: 73.8%
34. North Dakota
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,472
Median home list price: $242,022
Homeownership rate: 67.6%
33. Utah
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,657
Median home list price: $507,804
Homeownership rate: 72.3%
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32. Minnesota
High school graduation rate: 84%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,908
Median home list price: $313,220
Homeownership rate: 77.0%
31. Illinois
High school graduation rate: 86%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,960
Median home list price: $237,251
Homeownership rate: 68.2%
30. Arizona
High school graduation rate: 78%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,183
Median home list price: $418,167
Homeownership rate: 68.5%
29. New Mexico
High school graduation rate: 75%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,933
Median home list price: $272,757
Homeownership rate: 73.1%
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28. Delaware
High school graduation rate: 89%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,225
Median home list price: $346,462
Homeownership rate: 78.4%
27. Ohio
High school graduation rate: 82%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,565
Median home list price: $201,941
Homeownership rate: 64.4%
26. Wyoming
High school graduation rate: 82%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $6,441
Median home list price: $316,229
Homeownership rate: 76.6%
25. Pennsylvania
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,547
Median home list price: $240,405
Homeownership rate: 71.4%
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24. Louisiana
High school graduation rate: 80%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,164
Median home list price: $186,865
Homeownership rate: 68.7%
23. Michigan
High school graduation rate: 81%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,815
Median home list price: $211,377
Homeownership rate: 73.5%
22. Texas
High school graduation rate: 90%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,139
Median home list price: $292,434
Homeownership rate: 63.8%
21. Idaho
High school graduation rate: 81%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,178
Median home list price: $430,509
Homeownership rate: 69.4%
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20. South Dakota
High school graduation rate: 84%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,295
Median home list price: $276,628
Homeownership rate: 73.3%
19. South Carolina
High school graduation rate: 81%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $13,120
Median home list price: $269,201
Homeownership rate: 71.4%
18. Maine
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,210
Median home list price: $342,873
Homeownership rate: 73.4%
17. Nebraska
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,143
Median home list price: $234,591
Homeownership rate: 70.5%
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16. Montana
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,457
Median home list price: $432,310
Homeownership rate: 70.3%
15. Iowa
High school graduation rate: 92%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,113
Median home list price: $194,895
Homeownership rate: 69.9%
14. Missouri
High school graduation rate: 90%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,236
Median home list price: $221,650
Homeownership rate: 72.2%
13. Georgia
High school graduation rate: 82%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,220
Median home list price: $302,606
Homeownership rate: 62.9%
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12. Wisconsin
High school graduation rate: 90%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,229
Median home list price: $256,947
Homeownership rate: 68.9%
11. Florida
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $6,365
Median home list price: $391,497
Homeownership rate: 65.7%
10. Oklahoma
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,388
Median home list price: $184,576
Homeownership rate: 68.9%
9. Mississippi
High school graduation rate: 85%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,100
Median home list price: $162,256
Homeownership rate: 73.0%
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8. Indiana
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,040
Median home list price: $215,250
Homeownership rate: 72.0%
7. North Carolina
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,360
Median home list price: $303,480
Homeownership rate: 63.0%
6. Kansas
High school graduation rate: 87%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,387
Median home list price: $203,550
Homeownership rate: 69.6%
5. Tennessee
High school graduation rate: 91%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,570
Median home list price: $290,069
Homeownership rate: 67.7%
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4. Arkansas
High school graduation rate: 88%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,461
Median home list price: $176,626
Homeownership rate: 69.9%
3. Kentucky
High school graduation rate: 91%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,390
Median home list price: $187,737
Homeownership rate: 73.1%
2. Alabama
High school graduation rate: 92%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,618
Median home list price: $203,883
Homeownership rate: 73.1%
1. West Virginia
High school graduation rate: 91%
In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,944
Median home list price: $144,292
Homeownership rate: 79.1%
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Grace Lin contributed to the reporting for this article.
Methodology: GOBankingRates determined the best and worst states to live on a middle class income by analyzing each state using the following data factors: (1) Average change in middle income in proportion of households over 5-years as sourced from the 2016 and 2021 American Community Surveys, (2) high school graduation rates as sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics, (3) 2022-23 in-state tuition and fees (in 2022 dollars) for a public 4 year college as sourced from College Board, (4) five year percentage change for in-state tuition and fees as sourced from College Board, (5) home value change from 2018-2023 as sourced from Zillow, (6) home value (01/2023) as sourced from Zillow, (7) the cost of a 20% down payment on a typical home, (8) monthly mortgage payment calculated with Zillow's mortgage calculator and using the January 2023 home value, 20% down payment and applicable property taxes as sourced from Tax Foundation and a 30-year fixed mortgage rate of 6.65% as sourced from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis: 30-Year Fixed Mortgage Average in the United States , and (9) home ownership rate as sourced from the United States Census Bureau. All factors were scored and combined, with the lowest total score being best. All factors were weighted equally. All data was collected on and up to date as of March 8, 2023.
GOBankingRates took middle income to be defined as $35,000 - $99,999, based of the 2021 ACS median household income of $69,021 and available data for income brackets.
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Best and Worst States for America’s Middle Class
