Good News: New Yorkers Have Third-Highest Incomes in America

Turns out only two other states pay their workers better salaries than New York.

Apparently, the average U.S. salary sits at $74,600 and some of us may feel that a lot of us earn nowhere near that amount. However, if you live in New York, you are more likely to reach that number than most other states.

The state was found to offer some of the most competitive salaries in the United States, with teachers here having the second-highest income growth as a whole.

WalletHub looked into median salaries nationwide to determine which states pay their workers the most. Overall, New York landed in the top 3 spots when looking at the salaries of its upper, middle, and lower class workers.

States were compared based on their cost of living index (COLI) and how they rival the salaries from all demographics.

New York snagged a third place finish, mostly because it pays its wealthiest residents the best.

Adjusted for COLI, the average annual income for the state's top 5% was $553,436. That's a very nice chunk of change and is actually the highest in the country.

Middle class workers also had a decent income versus cost of living, Median income workers enjoyed the 3th highest salaries nationwide, which averages about $91,366 a year.

Low-income employees were another story and, shockingly, New York finished near the bottom of the barrel in this category. The average annual income for the state's most impoverished workers, or those classified in the bottom 20%, was about $13,301 - which ranks 44th best overall nationwide.

This finding is somewhat jarring because the state's minimum wage is one of the best in the country.

Read More: Minimum Wage Increases to $16 in Parts of NY for 2024

However, this particular group of people could be struggling more due to how expensive it is to live in New York. It was recently found the state was one of the most costly places to own pets. In all, that could explain why New York is the second-worst state to save money.

However, if you want another perspective on the matter, ask yourself if you think it's fair that 5 percent of people in our state earn at least 41 times more than that of the 20 percent of New York's workforce.

As for the two other states that ranked better than us, that would be New Jersey with a second-place finish and Virginia, at #1. Meanwhile the state with the worst overall showing was West Virginia.

You can compare all 50 states using the infographic below:

Do you think these findings reflect what you're making in New York? How much do you think you should earn for the work you do?  Sound off using the station's chat feature via our mobile app.

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