MYNORTHWEST BLOG

Report: Almost half of Seattle households make six-figure salary

Sep 26, 2019, 12:42 PM | Updated: 12:43 pm

It’s good to be working in Seattle, for about half of the residents. Seattle is among the top cities that experienced massive salary growth in recent years.

According to the most recent census data, real median income (the middle point) in the United States went up by .8 percent between 2017 and 2018. The current nationwide figure is $61,937. The 2018 median income is the highest that the census has ever recorded.

The Seattle Times’ FYI Guy Gene Balk looked a little deeper at the numbers and found that the median income specific to Seattle is currently $93,500 — a $7,000 jump in 2018 alone. The recent numbers rank Seattle as the city with the third highest pay jump in 2018 (San Francisco and San Jose are first and second).

The job that has disappeared the most in Washington state

The figures show considerable disparities in Seattle incomes, and not just between the haves and the have-nots. White households have the highest median income at $105,000, followed by Asian at $95,800, and so on. Black households remain at the bottom of the list with a median income of $42,500.

But everything considered, at Seattle’s median income, 48 percent of the city’s households pull in a six-figure salary (about 338,000 according to the Times), despite local living expenses registering far higher than the national average. A few years ago, it was estimated that it takes roughly $73,000 to be able to live in Seattle.

Another recent assessment took a look at another angle on Seattle’s quality of living. Wallethub ranked the city as the third best to live in. While it scores high for income growth, air quality, public transportation (that’s debatable), job opportunities, schools, and even coffee shops, Seattle ranks very low for affordability. The city is the 13th worst to live in when it comes to this factor.

MyNorthwest Blog

satellites, night sky...

Bill Kaczaraba

Opinion: With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world

American author Max Ehrmann wrote a poem in 1921. It was distributed in a Christmas card in 1933,

3 months ago

Gingerbread House...

MyNorthwest Staff

KIRO Newsradio wins Bonneville Gingerbread House competition

In a tradition unlike any other, the second annual Bonneville Seattle Gingerbread House competition was fierce between multiple departments.

3 months ago

recount election king...

Bill Kaczaraba

Kaczaraba: It took an election for me to figure out I don’t live in Edmonds

I was excited to get to vote on Edmonds mayor because I had been seeing signs all over the neighborhood. But it was not to be.

5 months ago

All-Star Game T-Mobile Park...

Bill Kaczaraba

Kaczaraba: MLB All-Star Game a picture perfect day for Seattle

What we witnessed this week was a spectacular Seattle. Homeless encampments were gone. Sidewalks were power-washed. There were even baskets with flowers hanging.

8 months ago

summer solstice...

Bill Kaczaraba

Kaczaraba: Summer solstice brings season of concerts, hikes

The summer solstice has come and gone, ushering in everyone's favorite season across the Pacific Northwest.

9 months ago

Seattle Sonics...

Bill Kaczaraba

Could Seattle Sonics 2.0 be on the horizon?

With the NBA Finals in full swing, league Commissioner Adam Silver is talking about a possible revival of the Seattle Sonics.

10 months ago

Report: Almost half of Seattle households make six-figure salary