You’re Probably Better Off Than You Were Four Years Ago
The answer to the classic presidential-election-year question appears to be yes (though the numbers are noisy).
The pandemic did some weird things to income statistics, but all in all they seem headed in the right direction.
Photographer: Joe Lamberti/Bloomberg
Are you better off than you were four years ago?
The simplest answer to the classic presidential-election-year question appears to be that yes, most Americans are better off now than they were in 2020. As the US Census Bureau reported last month, the 2023 median household income of $80,610 — that’s the middle of the distribution, with half of US households earning more and half less — was about $1,000 higher in inflation-adjusted terms than in 2020, and indications from wage data are that real incomes have probably increased or at least held steady so far this year.