All-time high: Annual median household income hits highest level since 1967, official poverty rate drops to 10.2% in 2025

U.S. households saw an increase in income, and the official poverty rate fell in 2025, although millions of people remain without health insurance and there was no significant progress on inequality.

The data comes from the annual CPS ASEC survey, conducted by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics between February and April 2026 on the situation of households during 2025. The response rate was 61.3%, and the results were adjusted to be representative of the population.

Income at record highs

According to the Census Bureau, real median household income reached $87,460, up 2.6% from 2024 and the highest level since 1967. Median after-tax income also rose by 3.1%, to $76,060.

The increase was not uniform across all groups. Median income rose 4.8% among black households, 3% among white households, and 2.9% among non-Hispanic white households. No statistically significant changes were recorded for Asian and Hispanic households.

Lower official poverty rate

The official poverty rate fell by 0.5 percentage points to 10.2%, equivalent to 34.5 million people. Child poverty fell to 13.4%, a historic low, while the rate among Hispanics dropped to 13.9%, also the lowest level on record.

The median poverty threshold for a family of four stood at $32,970. The official measure is based on pre-tax monetary income and does not include tax credits or certain forms of public assistance.

Improvement in women's earnings

Another positive development was the 3.2% increase in the median earnings of women who worked full-time throughout the year. The ratio of women's earnings to men's rose from 80.6% to 83.9%, although the wage gap still persists.

Furthermore, the inequality index was 8.7% lower when calculated using after-tax income than when using pre-tax income, reflecting the effect of taxes and benefits on the distribution of resources.

Supplementary poverty remains unchanged

The supplementary poverty measure, which includes taxes, public benefits, medical expenses, labor costs and regional differences in housing, stood at 13.1%, with no statistically significant changes compared to 2024.

This measure increased among people who had not completed a high school education, although it did not show significant changes in the other groups analyzed. Social Security was the main anti-poverty program and prevented 28.8 million people from falling below that threshold.

Healthcare shortcomings persist

Regarding health coverage, 26.7 million people—7.9% of the population—lacked health insurance throughout 2025. This figure did not change in a statistically significant way compared to the previous year. 

Employer-provided health insurance remained the most widespread type, covering 53.5% of the population, followed by Medicare, at 20.1%, and Medicaid, at 17.1%. Total public coverage reached 35.8%, with no significant changes, although Medicare increased by 0.6 percentage points and Medicaid decreased by 0.5 percentage points.

Among adults aged 19 to 64, public coverage fell by 0.5 percentage points to 17.3%. Private coverage among those aged 65 and older also declined, to 41.5%, a drop of 2.8 percentage points.