The average Australian would need to earn over $300,000 a year to consider themselves as officially "rich", new research has found.
What Is a Good Salary in Australia in 2022? Full-time employees need to make over $91,000 a year to be considered above-average earners in the country. However, this number varies significantly according to where you live, the industry you work in, your gender, education and experience.
According to the IRS, any household who makes over $500,000 a year in 2022 is considered a top 1% income earner. Of course, some parts of the country require a higher income level to be in the top 1% income, e.g. Connecticut at $580,000.
From the top 5% to the top 1%
Salaries start to jump significantly the closer you get to the top 1%. You'll start to see dramatic shifts in the top 5%, where the EPI found the average earners significantly increased to $343,000 in 2020, up from $324,000 the year before.
The difference between perception and facts is even more pronounced when looking at households with an annual income of more than $500,000. While the median weighted responses from survey participants suggest that one-fifth of U.S. households belong to that bracket, it's actually the oft-cited top 1%.
According to the IRS, a $400,000 or more annual household income represents America's top 1.8% income-earners.
To put $100,000 into context, it is just above what many families earn these days. The median income for families (including single parents) was $91,000 in 2021, according to data from the Census Bureau, and about 45% of families earned $100,000 or more last year.
Many have graduate degrees with educational attainment serving as the main distinguishing feature of this class. Household incomes commonly exceed $100,000, with some smaller one-income earners household having incomes in the high 5-figure range.
Upper Class Is Relative To The Median
In 2022, the national median household income is around $75,000, up from $68,000 in 2021. Therefore, as a whole, the typical upper-class household in the new decade has a median household income of over $130,000. $130,000 is a good household income amount.
So if you're on $100k or more, congratulations, you're in the top 20% of Aussie income earners. If not, don't worry, you're in the good company of 80% of Aussies.
If you make $120,000 a year living in Australia, you will be taxed $31,867. That means that your net pay will be $88,133 per year, or $7,344 per month. Your average tax rate is 26.6% and your marginal tax rate is 39.0%.
If you make $100,000 a year living in Australia, you will be taxed $24,967. That means that your net pay will be $75,033 per year, or $6,253 per month. Your average tax rate is 25.0% and your marginal tax rate is 34.5%. This marginal tax rate means that your immediate additional income will be taxed at this rate.
Estimates for average weekly ordinary time earnings for full-time adults (seasonally adjusted): Increased by 1.9% to $1,769.80 annually to May 2022. For males were $2,075.30 (public), and $1,835.60 (private). For females were $1,821.30 (public), and $1,523.60 (private).
Published 21 Nov, 2022
According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the average Australian income has risen 1.8% to $52,338.
With the median U.S. income being about $80,000 a year, a household of four earning between roughly $52,000 and $175,000 a year is considered middle class.
Across the entire country, that range is between $47,189 and $141,568, based on Census Bureau income data. But $150,000 is still a middle-class income by Pew's definition in nearly half of the country's 50 most-populated metropolitan areas, where incomes tend to be high.
The Pew Research Center defines the middle class as households that earn between two-thirds and double the median U.S. household income, which was $65,000 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 21 Using Pew's yardstick, middle income is made up of people who make between $43,350 and $130,000.
Households with a net worth of $1 million or more may be classified as members of the upper class, depending on the definition of class used.
5. How Common Is a 6 Figure Salary? According to the latest data available, around 5.4% of the American population makes 6 figures, but most of them earn in the lower range. For example, approximately 15.5% of 6-figure earners in the US make between $100,000 and $149,999.
High Earners, Not Rich Yet (HENRYs) is a term to describe people who earn high incomes, usually between $250,000 to $500,000, but have not saved or invested enough to be considered rich. Most of HENRYs' incomes are consumed by consumer spending, educational costs, and housing.
However, $200,000 per year is a high income and would place an individual in the top income bracket in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in the United States in 2021 was $68,703, so earning $200,000 per year would be significantly higher than the median income.
Annual income often comes in rounded numbers, as seen in the spikes sticking out at each $10,000. More round numbers at the $150,000 and $200,000 marks. About 2% of employed people made $300,000 or more in total income.
A $400,000 a year household income puts you in America's top 1.8% income-earners according to the IRS. Therefore, by most metrics, you are considered rich with this income.
According to the IRS, a $400,000 or more annual household income represents America's top 1.8% income-earners.
It then goes on to describe those middle income Australians as individuals earning between $120,000 and $160,000 a year.