How expensive is the American Dream for the middle class in 2025? The latest data is heartbreaking.

Question

Want to live a middle-class life in the United States? That calculation is getting harder and harder. The latest census data shows that the middle-class income threshold in 100 major cities across the U.S. has risen again.

A few key numbers hit hard:

Income threshold for middle class in large cities: $49,478 - $71,359

Compared to last year's $47,568 - $142,718, it has overall risen (based on the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau, with a median income of $74,225).

Top 3 Most Expensive Cities:

🔴 Arlington (Virginia): An annual income of $93,470 - $280,438 is considered middle class.
🔴 San Jose (California): $90,810 - $272,458
🔴 Irving (California): $85,317 - $255,978

Top 3 Most Cost-Effective Cities:

🟢 Detroit: An annual income of $25,384 - $76,160 is considered middle class (this comparison is a bit extreme)
🟢 Cleveland: $26,025 - $78,082
🟢 Toledo: $30,865 - $92,604

State-level data is also very wild:

Top Guizhou Ranking: Massachusetts surpassed New Jersey, with the median income range soaring to $66,565 - $199,716. New Jersey and Maryland follow closely behind.

Cheapest State Rankings: Mississippi remains at the bottom, with a middle-class range of only $36,132 - $108,406, while West Virginia and Louisiana are also in the low range.

The Logic Behind:

The definition by Pew Research is: Middle income = two-thirds to two times the local median income. In other words, in places with high housing prices and high living costs, the definition of “middle class” is correspondingly raised — this essentially reflects the worsening income inequality.

On one side, residents of Silicon Valley earn 280,000 a year and are still considered “middle class”, while on the other side, in Detroit, earning 76,000 a year hits the ceiling. This gap is not growth; it is a division.

TL;DR: The middle-class dream is not dead, but it requires more and more money to achieve it in major cities in the United States.