Household Income: What It Is and How to Calculate It

Michelle P. Scott is a New York attorney with extensive experience in tax, corporate, financial, and nonprofit law, and public policy. As General Counsel, private practitioner, and Congressional counsel, she has advised financial institutions, businesses, charities, individuals, and public officials, and written and lectured extensively.

Erika Rasure is globally-recognized as a leading consumer economics subject matter expert, researcher, and educator. She is a financial therapist and transformational coach, with a special interest in helping women learn how to invest.

Vikki Velasquez is a researcher and writer who has managed, coordinated, and directed various community and nonprofit organizations. She has conducted in-depth research on social and economic issues and has also revised and edited educational materials for the Greater Richmond area.

What Is Household Income?

The term household income generally refers to the combined gross income of all members of a household above a specified age. Household income includes every member of a family who lives under the same roof, including spouses and their dependents. The incomes of everyone count even if they aren't all used to support the household. Household income also includes anyone living in that home even if they're not related. Household income is an important risk measure used by lenders for underwriting loans and is a useful economic indicator of an area's standard of living.

Key Takeaways

• Household income is the combined gross cash income of all members of a household.
• The Census Bureau defines a household as a group of people living under the same roof whether they're related or not.
• Household income is used to evaluate the economic health of an area or to compare living conditions between geographic regions.
• The definition of household income may vary based on studies and government agencies/programs.
• Household income is one of three types of measures of wealth — the other two are family income and per capita income.

Understanding Household Income

Household income is defined as the total gross income before taxes, received within a 12-month period by all members of a household above a specified age. The Census Bureau notes this threshold as 15 and older. It includes (but is not limited to) wages, salaries, self-employment earnings, Social Security benefits, pensions, retirement income, investment income, welfare payments, and income from other sources.

The definition of household income and its components varies depending on the context. The term may be defined in law or regulation or may be determined by researchers or authors as an amount that includes or excludes specific items of income. Here are some examples:

• In calculating household income, the U.S. Census Bureau includes all pre-tax cash income of all individuals age 15 years or older belonging to a household, regardless of whether they are related to each other.
• The Census Bureau reported that real U.S. median household income was $74,580 in 2022, the most recently available data.
• Some programs and studies include the value of non-cash benefits or receipts, such as food stamps, in measuring household income. For example, the Congressional Budget Office adds non-cash income, particularly in-kind government benefits and services, to cash income in estimating total income.
• In some contexts, such as different government programs and a wide range of economic surveys and studies, household membership may differ or the analysis may focus on individuals. For example, in determining who gets a subsidy to help pay for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the definition of household income includes “yourself, your spouse if you're married, plus everyone you'll claim as a tax dependent, including those who don’t need coverage.” Also, in determining eligibility for some public benefit programs, household income is calculated by deducting certain expenses or allowances from gross income.

Household income provides a picture of the standard of living of various households. It is also a good barometer of the local and national economies. This figure can also help lenders determine the potential risk of lending to a potential borrower. For instance, households with a lower income are more likely to default than those with higher earnings.

Special Considerations

The per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of a country should typically increase along with the median household income. In recent years, a divergence has been seen between these figures in the United States. In turn, this has led to discussions about referencing median household income as a better indicator of economic well-being than GDP.

Research shows that the average household income has risen since 1970. The largest increases are in households in upper-income brackets.

Household Income vs. Family Income vs. Per Capita Income

Household income is one of three commonly cited measures of individual wealth. The other two, family income and per capita income, take different approaches to measure how well people in a given area are doing financially. Here's how they stack up against one another.

• Household income, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the gross cash income of all people ages 15 years or older occupying the same housing unit, regardless of how they are related, if at all. A single person occupying a dwelling alone is also considered a household.
• Family income considers only households occupied by two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption.
• Per capita income measures the income earned by each individual in a given area. Therefore, two-income earners in the same family or household are counted separately when measuring per capita income.

Average Household Income vs. Median Household Income

Household income is the total income of all members of a household aged 15 and older, whether they are related or not. To determine the average household income, all household incomes are added up and divided by the total number of households. By contrast, the median household income is the income level earned by a household in a designated demographic area, where half the households earn more and half earn less.

Median income is seen as a more accurate measure of how Americans are actually doing financially than average household income. That's because the average household income can be skewed by the inclusion of a few multi-millionaires or even billionaires, which would drag the average much higher than reality.

The Census Bureau counts households with no income in its calculation when it determines median household income in the United States. However, some other income analyses, particularly ones focusing on various average income statistics, use only positive income amounts.

When median and average amounts of household income are calculated for all U.S. households, the average figure will always exceed the median because of the impact of the small number of U.S. households with exceptionally high incomes.

Example of Household Income

Let's use a hypothetical example to show how household income works. Let's say Sam earns $120,000 annually from his job as a finance professional. His spouse Alex earns $80,000 as an analyst. Together, their family income is $200,000. Sam's nephew Jim also lives with them. Jim earns $40,000 as a sales rep. Assuming these figures are their only income, their total household income, as defined by the Census Bureau, is $240,000.

How Do You Define Household Income?

Household income is the total gross income received by all members of a household within a 12-month period. This figure comprises the earnings of everyone under the same roof who is age 15 or older, whether they're related or not. Sources include wages, salaries, retirement income, investment income, Social Security benefits, and earnings from other income sources.

What's the Difference Between Average Household Income and Median Household Income?

Average household income is the total amount of income earned by all members of a household age 15 or older, whether they are related or not. The income of all households is then added together and divided by the total number of households, to determine the average. Median income is the income level of a household in a specific demographic area, where half the households earn more and half earn less.

How Do You Calculate Household Income?

Gather all of the gross income of anyone age 15 or older. Make sure you include any type of income, such as wages, tips, bonuses, retirement income, and welfare payments. Social Security benefits, and others. Add these together to get the total household income.

The Bottom Line

Income is any money that a person earns through work or by selling products and services. For most people, it refers to individual earnings through work. This can come in the form of salary, wages, tips, bonuses, and vacation pay. This is just one part of household income, which the Census Bureau defines as the gross income of all individuals under the same roof who are over 15. Not only does this figure provide a barometer of people's standards of living, but it can also be used for other purposes, such as assessing risk by lenders. You can calculate household income by adding every member's gross income together.

Correction—Oct. 1, 2023: This article has been edited from a previous version to clarify that the average household income is the average of everyone divided by a household, not the average of all people in one household. It has also been edited to reflect that median household income refers to the income of a household at the 50th percentile of a designated demographic area.