Median Household Income in March 2022

Political Calculations’ initial estimate of median household income in March 2022 is $75,539, an increase of $740 (or 0.99%) from the initial estimate of $74,799 in February 2022.

The latest update to Political Calculations’ chart tracking Median Household Income in the 21st Century shows the nominal (red) and inflation-adjusted (blue) trends for median household income in the United States from January 2000 through March 2022. The inflation-adjusted figures are presented in terms of constant March 2022 U.S. dollars.

Now for the bad news. March 2022′s estimated median household income of $75,539 is $286 (or 0.4%) below February 2022′s inflation-adjusted estimate of $75,825 in terms of constant March 2022 U.S. dollars. It is also lower than December 2021 inflation-adjusted estimate of $75,775.

Going back to the nominal, non-inflation adjusted data, median household income rose by $2,059 from December 2021′s revised estimate of $73,480 to March 2022′s estimate of $75,539. All of that increase, and then some, has been eroded by President Biden’s inflation and the economic fallout from Russia’s 24 February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. It’s no accident the first estimate of real GDP growth in 2022-Q1 is negative.

Analyst’s Notes

For March 2022, the BEA made a minor upward revisions in the wage and salary data for January 2022 (+0.06%) and a more notable one for February 2022 (+0.32%).

References

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Table 2.6. Personal Income and Its Disposition, Monthly, Personal Income and Outlays, Not Seasonally Adjusted, Monthly, Middle of Month. Population. [Online Database (via Federal Reserve Economic Data)]. Last Updated: 29 April 2022 . Accessed: 29 April 2022.

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Table 2.6. Personal Income and Its Disposition, Monthly, Personal Income and Outlays, Not Seasonally Adjusted, Monthly, Middle of Month. Compensation of Employees, Received: Wage and Salary Disbursements. [Online Database (via Federal Reserve Economic Data)]. Last Updated: 29 April 2022. Accessed: 29 April 2022.

U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. Consumer Price Index, All Urban Consumers – (CPI-U), U.S. City Average, All Items, 1982-84=100. [Online Database (via Federal Reserve Economic Data)]. Last Updated: 12 April 2022. Accessed: 12 April 2022.