Best and Worst States for America’s Middle Class

Since the 1970s, the American middle class has been shrinking. According to the Pew Research Center, the percentage of middle class adults in middle-class households dropped pretty steeply from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2021. And, the wealth gap between higher-income households and middle-income Americans continues to widen.

You’re considered middle class if your family earns between $35,000 and $99,999 per year. GOBankingRates calculated that range based on the U.S. median household income of $69,021, per the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. To make greater financial gains, it’s important for America’s middle class to successfully manage daily living expenses while investing for the future. However, depending on where you live, rising costs can quickly eat up your paycheck — making it that much harder to save money and build wealth.

To find the best and worst states for the middle class, GOBankingRates analyzed a variety of factors spanning the top concerns for middle-income Americans:

• Income: The study determined the average change in the proportion of households earning the middle income, which indicates whether the middle class is growing or shrinking in each state. In 20 states, the middle class is expanding.
• Education: This includes the high school graduation rate, in-state college tuition and the five-year change in tuition costs in every state. Surprisingly, a handful of states saw tuition costs decrease over time.
• Housing: GOBankingRates compiled the median home list price, five-year change in home values, mortgage costs, homeownership rate and property tax rate for each state. There are still 15 states where you can buy an average home for less than $200,000.

If your family earns the middle income, it’s much easier to thrive if you live in a state that allows you to keep a bigger chunk of each paycheck. Unfortunately, many families live in states where the middle income falls short, putting goals like homeownership and student loan debt reduction out of reach — a reality for many middle-class Americans. Keep reading to learn more about the best and worst states for the middle class, ranked from worst to first.

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,999
• Median home list price: $956,094
• Homeownership rate: 60%

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,249
• Median home list price: $728,629
• Homeownership rate: 56.6%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,396
• Median home list price: $561,403
• Homeownership rate: 62.1%

• High school graduation rate: 80%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,881
• Median home list price: $479,558
• Homeownership rate: 63.6%

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,125
• Median home list price: $565,442
• Homeownership rate: 68.1%

• High school graduation rate: 81%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,103
• Median home list price:$541,186
• Homeownership rate: 69.7%

• High school graduation rate: 89%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,612
• Median home list price: $371,718
• Homeownership rate: 68.5%

• High school graduation rate: 91%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,443
• Median home list price: $463,319
• Homeownership rate: 64.5%

• High school graduation rate: 84%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,572
• Median home list price: $413,842
• Homeownership rate: 66.4%

• High school graduation rate: 80%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,987
• Median home list price: $352,479
• Homeownership rate: 66.1%

• High school graduation rate: 83%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,556
• Median home list price: $397,093
• Homeownership rate: 53.6%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $17,025
• Median home list price: $430,757
• Homeownership rate: 74.5%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,576
• Median home list price: $355,204
• Homeownership rate: 66.8%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,562
• Median home list price: $392,172
• Homeownership rate: 70.1%

• High school graduation rate: 84%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,586
• Median home list price: $422,792
• Homeownership rate: 62.3%

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $17,651
• Median home list price: $342,384
• Homeownership rate: 73.8%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,472
• Median home list price: $242,022
• Homeownership rate: 67.6%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,657
• Median home list price: $507,804
• Homeownership rate: 72.3%

• High school graduation rate: 84%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,908
• Median home list price: $313,220
• Homeownership rate: 77.0%

• High school graduation rate: 86%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,960
• Median home list price: $237,251
• Homeownership rate: 68.2%

• High school graduation rate: 78%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,183
• Median home list price: $418,167
• Homeownership rate: 68.5%

• High school graduation rate: 75%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,933
• Median home list price: $272,757
• Homeownership rate: 73.1%

• High school graduation rate: 89%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,225
• Median home list price: $346,462
• Homeownership rate: 78.4%

• High school graduation rate: 82%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $12,565
• Median home list price: $201,941
• Homeownership rate: 64.4%

• High school graduation rate: 82%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $6,441
• Median home list price: $316,229
• Homeownership rate: 76.6%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $15,547
• Median home list price: $240,405
• Homeownership rate: 71.4%

• High school graduation rate: 80%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,164
• Median home list price: $186,865
• Homeownership rate: 68.7%

• High school graduation rate: 81%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $14,815
• Median home list price: $211,377
• Homeownership rate: 73.5%

• High school graduation rate: 90%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,139
• Median home list price: $292,434
• Homeownership rate: 63.8%

• High school graduation rate: 81%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,178
• Median home list price: $430,509
• Homeownership rate: 69.4%

• High school graduation rate: 84%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,295
• Median home list price: $276,628
• Homeownership rate: 73.3%

• High school graduation rate: 81%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $13,120
• Median home list price: $269,201
• Homeownership rate: 71.4%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,210
• Median home list price: $342,873
• Homeownership rate: 73.4%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,143
• Median home list price: $234,591
• Homeownership rate: 70.5%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,457
• Median home list price: $432,310
• Homeownership rate: 70.3%

• High school graduation rate: 92%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,113
• Median home list price: $194,895
• Homeownership rate: 69.9%

• High school graduation rate: 90%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,236
• Median home list price: $221,650
• Homeownership rate: 72.2%

• High school graduation rate: 82%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,220
• Median home list price: $302,606
• Homeownership rate: 62.9%

• High school graduation rate: 90%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,229
• Median home list price: $256,947
• Homeownership rate: 68.9%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $6,365
• Median home list price: $391,497
• Homeownership rate: 65.7%

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,388
• Median home list price: $184,576
• Homeownership rate: 68.9%

• High school graduation rate: 85%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,100
• Median home list price: $162,256
• Homeownership rate: 73.0%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,040
• Median home list price: $215,250
• Homeownership rate: 72.0%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $7,360
• Median home list price: $303,480
• Homeownership rate: 63.0%

• High school graduation rate: 87%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,387
• Median home list price: $203,550
• Homeownership rate: 69.6%

• High school graduation rate: 91%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $10,570
• Median home list price: $290,069
• Homeownership rate: 67.7%

• High school graduation rate: 88%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $9,461
• Median home list price: $176,626
• Homeownership rate: 69.9%

• High school graduation rate: 91%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,390
• Median home list price: $187,737
• Homeownership rate: 73.1%

• High school graduation rate: 92%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $11,618
• Median home list price: $203,883
• Homeownership rate: 73.1%

• High school graduation rate: 91%
• In-state tuition and fees for 2022-23 school year: $8,944
• Median home list price: $144,292
• Homeownership rate: 79.1%

Grace Lin contributed to the reporting for this article.

_{Methodology: GOBankingRates determined the best and worst states to live on a middle class income by analyzing each state using the following data factors: (1) Average change in middle income in proportion of households over 5-years as sourced from the 2016 and 2021 American Community Surveys, (2) high school graduation rates as sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics, (3) 2022-23 in-state tuition and fees (in 2022 dollars) for a public 4 year college as sourced from College Board, (4) five year percentage change for in-state tuition and fees as sourced from College Board, (5) home value change from 2018-2023 as sourced from Zillow, (6) home value (01/2023) as sourced from Zillow, (7) the cost of a 20% down payment on a typical home, (8) monthly mortgage payment calculated with Zillow’s mortgage calculator and using the January 2023 home value, 20% down payment and applicable property taxes as sourced from Tax Foundation and a 30-year fixed mortgage rate of 6.65% as sourced from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis: 30-Year Fixed Mortgage Average in the United States , and (9) home ownership rate as sourced from the United States Census Bureau. All factors were scored and combined, with the lowest total score being best. All factors were weighted equally. All data was collected on and up to date as of March 8, 2023.}

_{GOBankingRates took middle income to be defined as $35,000 – $99,999, based of the 2021 ACS median household income of $69,021 and available data for income brackets.}