Racial and ethnic disparities in median household income have been largely persistent across time: Inflation-adjusted median household income (2023 dollars), by race and ethnicity, 1972–2023

Year White Black Hispanic AIAN Asian
1972 $63,130   $36,330   $46,970 
1973 64,080   37,390   46,960 
1974 62,000   36,560   46,760 
1975 60,250   35,900   42,960 
1976 62,170   36,230   43,870 
1977 62,680   36,270   45,850 
1978 64,310   37,930   47,580 
1979 64,440   37,310   48,020 
1980 63,050   35,690   45,260 
1981 61,880   34,230   46,310 
1982 61,280   34,160   43,320 
1983 61,530   34,040   43,570 
1984 63,460   35,420   44,670 
1985 64,750   37,680   44,410 
1986 66,960   37,720   45,910 
1987 68,270   37,920   46,790 
1988 69,010   38,280   47,500 
1989 69,430   40,420   49,000   $39,563 
1990 68,090   39,810   47,600   42,083 
1991 66,480   38,680   46,670   45,713 
1992 66,780   37,620   45,330   47,937 
1993 66,890   38,230   44,800   47,457 
1994 67,290   40,280   44,860   47,767 
1995 69,570   41,900   42,780   46,133 
1996 70,710   42,810   45,410   44,703 
1997 72,430   44,710   47,530   44,757 
1998 74,730   44,640   49,890   49,753 
1999 76,180   48,150   53,040   52,690 
2000 76,080   49,470   55,310   53,277 
2001 75,520   48,060   54,740   52,210 
2002 75,550   46,750   53,320   52,427   $84,770 
2003 75,390   46,780   52,070   51,977   87,890 
2004 75,290   46,330   52,760   50,793   88,520 
2005 75,980   46,160   53,810   50,130   91,400 
2006 76,210   46,480   54,930   48,790   93,390 
2007 77,850   48,080   54,830   49,377   93,700 
2008 75,930   46,790   51,840   48,540   89,750 
2009 74,770   44,730   52,220   48,703   89,880 
2010 73,760   43,510   50,960   46,313   87,030 
2011 72,780   42,330   50,730   44,523   85,550 
2012 73,460   42,940   50,260   43,507   88,450 
2013 75,500   44,510   51,340   43,893   88,775 
2014 75,640   44,440   53,340   46,977   93,270 
2015 79,080   46,350   56,720   48,927   96,940 
2016 80,990   49,170   59,370   51,387   101,400 
2017 83,420   48,720   61,585   50,260   99,565 
2018 84,740   49,620   61,720   51,043   104,600 
2019 89,900   53,710   66,330   53,203   116,000 
2020 88,200   53,840   64,840   56,020   111,300 
2021 87,340   54,080   64,930   57,590   113,600 
2022 84,280   54,960   65,300   56,433   113,100 
2023 89,050  56,490  65,540  56,467  112,800  

Note: AIAN refers to American Indian and Alaska Native. All race categories are single race and do not distinguish Hispanic ethnicity from non-Hispanic ethnicity, except for white, which is exclusive of Hispanic ethnicity (i.e., non-Hispanic white alone, Black alone, AIAN alone, and Asian alone). Hispanic can be of any race. AIAN data are 3-year pooled averages to account for sample size restrictions. Please see Appendix Table 1 for 1-year estimates. 

Notes: AIAN refers to American Indian and Alaska Native.All race categories are single race and do not distinguish Hispanic ethnicity from non-Hispanic ethnicity, except for white, which is exclusive of Hispanic ethnicity (i.e., non-Hispanic white alone, Black alone, AIAN alone, and Asian alone). Hispanic can be of any race. AIAN data are 3-year pooled averages to account for sample size restrictions. Please see Appendix Table 1 for 1-year estimates.  Due to a redesign of the income questions in the Current Population Survey— Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC) in 2013 and an update to the CPS ASEC processing system in 2017, the U.S. Census Bureau reported two estimates of income in each of those years. The 2013 and 2017 income values in this graph are an average of the two estimates reported in each year.

Source: Economic Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey, Income and Poverty in the United States 2023 data, Table A-2.

Source: Economic Policy Institute analysis of U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey–Annual Social and Economic Supplements 1968 to 2023. “Table A-2. Households by Total Money Income, Race, and Hispanic Origin of Householder: 1967 to 2023” (Excel table) from Income and Poverty in the United States: 2023, September 2024. 

View the underlying data on epi.org.