- A family in the United States needs an annual income of at least $421,926 to be in the top 1% of earners, according to Economic Policy Institute data.
- The minimum income needed to be in the top 1% in every state ranges from $255,000 in Arkansas to more than $700,000 in Connecticut.
- In 19 states, the annual income required to be in the 1% tops $400,000.
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The feeling of being wealthy is largely relative. One man's "rich" may be another man's "broke."
Economically, however, the delineation is clear. A family in the United States needs a minimum annual income of $421,926 to be in the top 1% of earners, according to data adapted from an Economic Policy Institute report originally published in July 2018.
The average income for families in the top 1%? $1,316,985.
"In 2015, a family in the top 1 percent nationally received, on average, 26.3 times as much income as a family in the bottom 99 percent," the researchers, Estelle Sommelier and Mark Price, wrote.
In this data, the term family is used to represent one tax unit — either a single adult or married couple who files taxes and may or may not have dependents — and all figures are from 2015. The minimum income needed to be in the top 1% in every state ranges from $255,000 in Arkansas to more than $700,000 in Connecticut.
Below, find out how much annual income it takes to be part of the 1% in every state, plus the average annual income of families in the 1%. The states and Washington, DC, are ranked in ascending order by annual income.
51. ArkansasWikimedia CommonsMinimum income to be in the top 1%: $255,050
Average income in the top 1%: $864,772
50. MississippiSean Pavone/Shutterstock
Minimum income to be in the top 1%: $254,362
Average income in the top 1%: $580,461
49. New MexicoJimack/Shutterstock
Minimum income to be in the top 1%: $255,429
Average income in the top 1%: $615,082
48. West VirginiaSteve Heap/Shutterstock
Minimum income to be in the top 1%: $258,078
Average income in the top 1%: $535,648
47. Kentuckyf11photo/Shutterstock
Minimum income to be in the top 1%: $274,818
Average income in the top 1%: $719.012
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