The U.S. real median household income reached $87,460 in 2025, up 2.6% from $85,210 in 2024 and the highest level recorded since the U.S. Census Bureau began tracking the measure in 1967. All income estimates are adjusted for inflation.

Post-tax income

The Census Bureau also measures household income after accounting for taxes and credits. Post-tax median household income was $76,060 in 2025, up 3.1% from $73,760 in 2024. 

Post-tax median household income was not a record. It remained below the levels recorded in 2020 and 2021, when households received stimulus payments and other credits related to the pandemic.

Income distribution

Income gains varied across the income distribution. At the 90th percentile, both pre-tax and post-tax income increased for the third consecutive year.

At the 10th percentile, neither pre-tax nor post-tax income in 2025 differed significantly from 2024.

Looking at the period from 1967 to 2025, pre-tax household income increased by about 56% at both the 10th and 50th percentiles. At the 90th percentile, it increased by about 121%.

The ratio of income at the 90th percentile to income at the 10th percentile increased from 9.23 in 1967 to 13.06 in 2025. In 2025, households at the 90th percentile had income about 13 times greater than households at the 10th percentile.