How the American middle class has changed in the past five decades
The share of adults who live in middle-class households fell from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2021, according to a new analysis.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
The share of adults who live in middle-class households fell from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2021, according to a new analysis.
In the United States, the transience of economic status varies significantly across racial and ethnic groups and by level of education.
Among all Asian origin groups in the U.S., Chinese American households had the highest income inequality in 2022.
Over the past 50 years, the highest-earning 20% of U.S. households have steadily brought in a larger share of the country’s total income.
38% of parents with children whose K-12 schools closed in the spring said that their child was likely to face digital obstacles in schoolwork.
While the size of the U.S. middle class remained relatively stable between 2002 and 2016, financial gains for middle-income Americans were modest compared with those of higher-income households.
The American middle class is smaller than middle classes across Western Europe, but its income is higher.
In the U.S., the racial and ethnic wealth gap has evolved differently for families at different income levels since the Great Recession.
The fortunes of the middle classes across Western Europe are moving in different directions. Some nations are experiencing both growing incomes and expanding middle classes, while other nations are witness to stagnant or declining incomes and shrinking middle classes, a new Pew Research Center analysis of 11 Western European countries has found. But in a few other countries studied, the middle-class shares are decreasing even as incomes overall are rising.
As part of a new study, Pew Research Center designed income calculators to help you determine where you fit on the income ladder in Western Europe.
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