The 'Upper Middle Class' Is Swelling

The Wall Street Journal reports on a decades-long shift of wealth in America: The share of families in the "upper middle class" has roughly tripled over the past half-century, with about 31% of Americans now landing there, up from around 10% in 1979, according to a new analysis from the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute. The definition of "upper middle class" is admittedly a little squishy, but the AEI researchers define it as a family of three earning between $133,000 and $400,000 a year. They're better off than those in the "core middle class" and "lower middle class," and less well off than those in the "rich" category, by the AEI metrics.

As the ranks of the upper middle class have swelled, the share of families in the other middle-class tiers have shrunk. Meanwhile, the share of families in the fifth category—"poor or near poor," defined as a family of three earning $40,000 or less in 2024 dollars—has fallen from 30% in 1979 to 19%. Those in the upper middle class tend to look less like tech founders and more like dual-income, college-educated couples: accountants, logistics managers, chemical-plant staffers. Many don't see themselves as wealthy, squeezed by housing, child care, and college costs even as they book cruises and install backyard pools. For all the charts, caveats, and personal stories, read the full story.