I'd like to know where a certain income level ranks (as a percentile)
in the USA. For example, if my income is $100,000 per year, what
percentile am I in (I'm making more than what percent of americans).
I'm looking for a table or graph with summary data. (Or, an
interactive site where I could enter a value and get a result.)

I've seen, and found, plenty of statements like "The top X percentile
pays Y percent of taxes", but cannot find a primary source. Also, the
source would need to be clear on whether it refers to individual or
household income, and whether the percentile is based on all
individuals/households or just those with income.

Hello billtex-ga,

I think that the following tables will suit your needs.  (They appear
to be the most recent tables from the Census Bureau, though perhaps
the 2002 tables will come out shortly.)  The first table seems
especially suited to what you are looking for, but you might be able
to utilize the others as well.

"Table IE-4.  Household Income Limits by Percentile: 1967 to 2001"
U.S. Census Bureau
http://www.census.gov/hhes/income/histinc/ie4.html

"Table HINC-06. Income Distribution to $250,000 or More for
Households: 2001"
U.S. Census Bureau
http://www.census.gov/hhes/income/histinc/ie3.html

"Table IE-1.  Selected Measures of Household Income Dispersion: 1967
to 2001"
U.S. Census Bureau
http://www.census.gov/hhes/income/histinc/ie1.html

I hope that this information is helpful.

- justaskscott-ga


Search terms used on Google:

income percentiles
site:census.gov income

---

Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 18 Apr 2003 15:24 PDT

The second citation is incorrect; it should be:

http://ferret.bls.census.gov/macro/032002/hhinc/new06_000.htm