Income inequality widens as top earners grow wealth while bottom households stagnate
New U.S. Census Bureau data shows that in 2025, income for the wealthiest 10% of Americans rose by 1.7%, whereas earnings for the poorest 10% remained nearly flat, increasing the gap between these groups. Median household income increased overall by 2.6%, but poverty rates stayed at 13.1%. The data highlights a long-term trend where top earners have seen significantly higher growth compared to lower-income households—since 1967, the top 10% saw their incomes rise by 121%, while the bottom only grew by 56%. In recent decades alone (this century), income for the top has grown by 33%, versus just 8% at the bottom. The data also reveals stark disparities in wealth distribution, with the top 20% earning over half of all household income and the bottom 20% receiving only 3%. The racial income gap persists as well: for every dollar earned by a median White household, Hispanic households made 76 cents and Black households 62 cents. Asian households outperformed their white counterparts with $1.31 per dollar of white earnings. The gender pay gap also remains an issue but showed slight improvement in 2025—female workers earned 84 cents for every dollar a male worker made, up from 81 cents the previous year.
Topics: economic growth income inequality poverty rate U.S. Census Bureau data