DENVER (KDVR) — Are you part of the top 1%? Well, it depends heavily on which state you live in, according to a new study by GoBankingRates.
The study used Internal Revenue Service data from 2021 and 2022 to find what the top 1% threshold was for all states. The amounts were adjusted for inflation.
Five states — Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, Washington and New Jersey — all require people to earn $1 million or more to be considered part of the 1%.
While Colorado was not one of those states, it isn’t too far off. According to the data, Coloradans need to earn $896,273 a year to be among the wealthiest earners in the state.
The 10 states with the highest incomes needed to be in the 1% of earners:
Connecticut – $1,192,947
Massachusetts – $1,152,992
California – $1,072,248
Washington – $1,024,599
New Jersey – $1,010,101
New York – $999,747
Colorado – $896,273
Florida – $882,302
Wyoming – $872,896
New Hampshire – $839,742
West Virginia had the lowest income needed to be part of the 1% in the state at $435,302 a year. That is under half of what is required in all but nine of the top 10 states.
How does the 1% compare to everyone else?
While the top 1% earns at least $896,273 a year in Colorado, that is obviously nowhere near what the rest of the state is earning.
According to U.S. Census Bureau Data, the median household income for a single person in the state was $77,331 as of April 2024. This is 11 times lower than what is needed to be considered among the wealthiest top percent.
Compare that to the state with the highest threshold, Connecticut, where the median income is slightly higher at $81,285. People have to earn about 14 times more than that to be considered part of the 1%.
