What counts as middle class in Kansas City? New study lists range
Who counts as part of the middle class in Kansas City? A new study found a dividing line between states in the United States, and some may be surprised to see if they’re included.
Finance advice website SmartAsset calculated how much a single person’s salary needs to be in order to be considered middle class in all 50 states and the 100 largest cities.
They determined the middle-class income range by using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 one-year American Community Survey and applying a variation of the Pew Research definition of middle-income households, which is a “salary range by two-thirds to double the median U.S. income.”
So what do you need to make to be considered middle class in Kansas City? What about in Kansas and Missouri? Here’s what the data says.
What’s middle class in Kansas City?
The minimum income needed to be middle class in Kansas City is lower than what residents in 69 other cities need to make, according to SmartAsset. The range of what counts as middle class spans over $100,000.
The middle class income range in Kansas City is $46,639 to $139,916, based on a median household income of $69,958.
Fellow Missouri city St. Louis has the fifth-lowest bound for what counts as middle-class income, with a range of $35,583 to $106,748 and a median household income of $53,374. On the Kansas side, Wichita has a middle class income range of $43,903 to $131,710 with a median household income of $65,855.
The city with the highest income needed to stay middle class is San Jose, California, with a range of $98,817 to $296,452 and a median household income of $148,226.
What’s middle class in Kansas and Missouri?
Missouri has the ninth-lowest minimum for what counts as middle-class income between the 50 states. Its range goes from $47,726 to $143,178 with a median household income of $71,589.
Kansas ranks higher on the charts at 33rd highest, with a middle class income range of $50,343 to $151,028. The median household income in the state is $75,514.
The state with the highest income needed to stay middle class is Massachusetts. The middle class income range in the state is between $69,885 and $209,656, and the median household income is $104,828.
