We present here an individual income percentile calculator for the United States for 2018. Enter a pre-tax income earned between January and December 2017 to compare to income percentiles in the full year. (See our math and methodology for individual income brackets in the United States.)
Want more? See our individual income by age calculator and household income calculator. Also see our net worth calculator and net worth by age calculator.
Individual Income Percentile Calculator: Statistics in 2018
The following graph shows changes in income cutoffs for selected income brackets between 2018 and 2017 (read: full-year 2017 and 2016 earnings). The numbers shown are adjusted for inflation.
Due to your requests, we’ve also built in two screens based on weekly hours worked.
Since many folks have asked about full-time earnings, you can now see the results for workers who work 30+ or 40+ hours a week (inclusive) directly in this tool. Choose your favorite measure!
What was the Median Individual Income in 2018?
In the United States for an individual worker, the median income was $39,048 in 2018. This encompassed income earned between January and December 2017 (the survey took place in March 2018). It is up from $37,610 in full-year 2016.
Notably, there is a large difference in median income if you examine full-time workers. For those working 30+ hours weekly the median income was $41,169. For those working 40+ hours a week the median income was $43,500.
What was the Average Individual Income in 2018?
In the United States, the average individual income was $55,880 in 2018. This number encompasses income earned between January and December 2017.
Again, there were significant differences for full-time workers. Those working 30 hours or more weekly averaged income of $59,356.20. Workers clocking 40 or more hours a week averaged income of $61,384.93.
How Many US Workers Made 6 Figures in 2018?
Around 13.4% or 23,294,106 US workers made $100,000 or more in income.
How Many US Workers Make $250,000 or More in 2018?
A mere 1.6% or 2,827,241 US workers made $250,000 or more as an individual.
What were the Cutoffs for top 10% and top 5% of Individual Incomes in 2018?
The top 10% of US workers made $114,068 or more while the top 5% of workers made at least $153,420.
What is the 2018 Cutoff to be a One-Percent Earner?
See our one percent in America article, we’d argue that net worth is a more suitable measure of the one percent. However, recognizing that a definition change is an uphill battle we did the math!
To reach the 1% in 2018 required an individual income of $300,577. Around 1,738,742 individuals made a 1% – or greater – income in full-year 2017. The top .5% of workers made at least an income of $435,550.
Source and Methodology on the 2018 Individual Income Percentile Calculator
Sarah Flood, Miriam King, Renae Rodgers, Steven Ruggles, and J. Robert Warren. Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey: Version 6.0 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2018. https://doi.org/10.18128/D030.V6.0
For methodology, please see the 2018 individual income bracket post. The only additional screens in this calculator were for workers reporting 30+ and 40+ hours a week or work, respectively.
Want to see changes over time? Try our calculators from years past:
- 2017 US Individual Income Calculator
- 2016 US Individual Income Calculator
- 2015 US Individual Income Calculator
- 2014 US Individual Income Calculator
How did you rank in 2018 vs. 2017? Are you increasing relative to the population? How do you think you’ll do next year?
The Social Security Administration issues an annual report on wages, and their median worker income is lower than the one reported here. See https://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/netcomp.cgi?year=2017
SSA states median worker income was $31,561 for 2017, and that’s for 165 million workers. Your survey information states $39,048. Usually surveys are less accurate than IRS and SSA documents. The survey differs from the SSA by 24%.
Thanks – we’re familiar with the other major US income data sources. Here’s a paper comparing the ASEC versus the SSA income data: https://s3.amazonaws.com/sitesusa/wp-content/uploads/sites/242/2014/05/Turek_2012FCSM_IX-C.pdf
Most importantly for our purposes, the ASEC considers other income sources and not solely Social Security and Medicare covered income. See here for a full list of sources: https://cps.ipums.org/cps-action/variables/INCTOT#comparability_section