Move Here To Maximize Your Money: Easiest Cities To Reach Upper-Class Status

Reaching upper-class status is one of the hardest feats to achieve in the U.S., but it is by no means impossible. The upper class is the social class that constitutes the highest income earners in the society. According to a 2022 Gallup survey, 14% of Americans identified as upper-middle class and only 2% identified as upper class. 

One way to increase your chances of upper-class success is to identify cities where you can maximize your money and build up wealth in less time. 

GOBankingRates has compiled a list of 50 cities where you can most easily reach upper-class status. The pace of life, hustle culture and minimum threshold to be considered upper class make each and every one of these cities ideal options.

Also here are things upper class pays for in cash that middle class doesn’t.

• Median Household Income: $33,296
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $51,796
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $66,592

• Median Household Income: $34,295
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $53,350
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $68,590

• Median Household Income: $34,833
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $54,187
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $69,666

• Median Household Income: $35,188
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $54,739
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $70,376

• Median Household Income: $35,451
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $55,148
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $70,902

• Median Household Income: $35,421
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $55,257
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $71,042

• Median Household Income: $36,258
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $56,403
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $72,516

• Median Household Income: $36,550
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $56,858
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $73,100

• Median Household Income: $36,874
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $57,362
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $73,748

• Median Household Income: $37,271
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $57,979
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $74,542

• Median Household Income: $37,627
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $58,533
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $75,254

• Median Household Income: $37,761
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $58,741
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $75,522

• Median Household Income: $39,066
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $60,771
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $78,132

• Median Household Income: $39,411
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $61,308
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $78,822

• Median Household Income: $39,998
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $62,221
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $79,996

• Median Household Income: $40,307
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $62,702
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $80,614

• Median Household Income: $40,309
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $62,705
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $80,618

• Median Household Income: $40,996
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $63,774
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $81,992

• Median Household Income: $41,024
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $63,817
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,048

• Median Household Income: $41,115
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $63,959
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,230

• Median Household Income: $41,230
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $64,138
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,460

• Median Household Income: $41,365
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $64,348
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,730

• Median Household Income: $41,443
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $64,469
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,886

• Median Household Income: $41,484
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $64,533
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $82,968

• Median Household Income: $41,841
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $65,088
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $83,682

• Median Household Income: $42,031
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $65,384
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $84,062

• Median Household Income: $42,193
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $65,636
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $84,386

• Median Household Income: $42,351
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $65,881
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $84,702

• Median Household Income: $42,464
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $66,057
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $84,928

• Median Household Income: $42,852
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $66,661
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $85,704

• Median Household Income: $43,135
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $67,101
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $86,270

• Median Household Income: $43,450
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $67,591
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $86,900

• Median Household Income: $43,499
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $67,667
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $86,998

• Median Household Income: $43,584
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $67,799
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $87,168

• Median Household Income: $43,724
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $68,017
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $87,448

• Median Household Income: $43,783
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $68,109
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $87,566

• Median Household Income: $44,156
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $68,689
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $88,312

• Median Household Income: $44,444
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $69,137
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $88,888

• Median Household Income: $44,974
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $69,962
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $89,948

• Median Household Income: $45,016
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,027
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,032

• Median Household Income: $45,018
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,030
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,036

• Median Household Income: $45,113
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,178
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,226

• Median Household Income: $45,121
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,190
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,242

• Median Household Income: $45,319
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,498
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,638

• Median Household Income: $45,357
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,557
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,714

• Median Household Income: $45,405
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,632
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,810

• Median Household Income: $45,417
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $70,651
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $90,834

• Median Household Income: $45,932
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $71,452
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $91,864

• Median Household Income: $45,967
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $71,506
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $91,934

• Median Household Income: $46,184
• Minimum Threshold To Be Considered Upper-Class: $71,844
• Limit of Upper Middle Class Income: $92,368

Methodology: For this piece, GOBankingRates looked at all the cities with over 15,000 households as sourced from the 2022 American Community Survey as conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. With these cities isolated, GOBankingRates then found the 50 cities that had the lowest threshold in terms of income to be considered upper-middle class. Middle-class income is defined as two-thirds to double the income of an area and upper-middle class would be the top third of that range. All data was collected and is up to date as of June 24, 2024.