Most people would love to compare paychecks, if only it were more socially acceptable.
To pull the curtain back on who is making what and where, personal finance site GoBankingRates determined the average income in every state and the District of Columbia based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2017 American Community Survey.
The results found that only five spots — D.C.; Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland and Massachusetts — had average annual incomes over six figures.
Residents of nation’s capital had the biggest paydays overall, with household incomes averaging $116,090. (Household incomes take in account every kind of household, ranging from one person to multiple people.)
On the flip side, Southern states made up a majority of the low end of the pay scale, with eight of the lowest-income states out of the bottom 10. In the last spot, Mississippi posted an average household income of $58,371, GoBankingRates found.
However, the South also has a lower cost of living, and some states in the region — such as Florida — have no personal income tax, noted Andrew DePietro, GoBankingRates’lead researcher and data analyst. By contrast, in D.C. “the cost of living is so high that it necessitates a high income,” he added.
The key,DePietro said, is to try to find a location with both high incomes and low expenses.
So how does your income measure up to your neighbors’? Here’s a breakdown of the average in every state and D.C. (in alphabetical order), according to GoBankingRates:
Alabama
Average income: $64,476
Alaska
Average income: $94,469
Arizona
Average income: $73,735
Arkansas
Average income: $61,330
California
Average income: $96,104
Colorado
Average income: $88,388
Connecticut
Average income: $105,998
Delaware
Average income: $84,146
District of Columbia
Average income: $116,090
Florida
Average income: $72,993
Georgia
Average income: $74,763
Hawaii
Average income: $95,569
Idaho
Average income: $67,338
Illinois
Average income: $85,262
Indiana
Average income: $69,197
Iowa
Average income: $73,510
Kansas
Average income: $74,633
Kentucky
Average income: $64,436
Louisiana
Average income: $66,861
Maine
Average income: $70,210
Maryland
Average income: $103,845
Massachusetts
Average income: $101,858
Michigan
Average income: $72,091
Minnesota
Average income: $86,796
Mississippi
Average income: $58,371
Missouri
Average income: $70,144
Montana
Average income: $68,622
Nebraska
Average income: $74,309
Nevada
Average income: $73,862
New Hampshire
Average income: $91,605
New Jersey
Average income: $105,917
New Mexico
Average income: $64,625
New York
Average income: $93,443
North Carolina
Average income: $70,523
North Dakota
Average income: $81,334
Ohio
Average income: $71,119
Oklahoma
Average income: $67,682
Oregon
Average income: $75,851
Pennsylvania
Average income: $78,192
Rhode Island
Average income: $82,407
South Carolina
Average income: $66,759
South Dakota
Average income: $71,085
Tennessee
Average income: $68,386
Texas
Average income: $80,879
Utah
Average income: $83,147
Vermont
Average income: $75,621
Virginia
Average income: $94,229
Washington
Average income: $88,563
West Virginia
Average income: $59,634
Wisconsin
Average income: $74,372
Wyoming
Average income: $76,731
