AnswerIn Washington, the median household income is $106,287. To rank in the top 20%, you need to earn more than $235,940. Top 5%: $687,000.
Median: $106,287 · Top 20%: $235,940 · Top 5%: $687,000
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-Year Estimates
Washington income percentile [2026]
Where Washington, District of Columbiahouseholds rank by income — sourced from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey 2023 5-year estimates, covering roughly 672,079 residents.
In Washington, DC, the median household income is $106,287. The bottom 20% earns under $37,090; the top 20% threshold is $235,940; the top 5% starts at $687,000. Median rent is $1,900/month and the median home value is $724,600. A $100,000 household income ranks at roughly the 46th percentile locally.
Key stats for Washington
Income percentile breakpoints
- 20th percentile (bottom quintile)
- $37,090
- 40th percentile
- $81,976
- Median (≈ 50th–60th percentile)
- $138,274
- 80th percentile (top 20%)
- $235,940
- 95th percentile (top 5%) — estimated
- $687,000
Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-Year Estimates. City-level p60 is used as the “median-ish” row because ACS quintile upper limits bracket the household median near p60 for most big US cities. The Census Bureau top-codes its top-5% figure at $250,001 for high-income cities, so the 95th-percentile value here is estimated by fitting a Pareto tail to Washington's lower (un-top-coded) quintile breakpoints. Treat it as a modeled upper-tail benchmark, not a published ACS figure.
Local economic context
Washington, DC has the most recession-resistant income base of any large US city, because its anchor employer — the federal government — does not lay off in downturns the way private industry does. Around the federal core orbits an enormous professional-services economy: defense and intelligence contractors (Booz Allen Hamilton, Leidos, General Dynamics, much of it across the river in Northern Virginia), the largest concentration of lobbying and trade-association jobs in the country, and the white-shoe law firms that exist to work the regulatory state. Add Georgetown, Howard, and George Washington universities, a growing biotech and cybersecurity layer, and Danaher's corporate headquarters, and you get a city where a six-figure household income is closer to ordinary than exceptional. DC's own income tax is steeply progressive, topping out near 10.75% on high earners — a meaningful bite that pushes many high earners across the river to Virginia (lower, flatter) or Maryland. Housing is expensive but, unusually for the Northeast Corridor, often buyable: a renovated rowhouse in Capitol Hill, Petworth, or Columbia Heights runs $800K–$1.3M, and a 2BR condo in a decent neighborhood clears $600K. Commute reality is the Metro — WMATA's color-line subway, expansive but plagued by maintenance shutdowns — plus the chronic I-495 Beltway, I-66, and George Washington Parkway congestion, and the VRE and MARC commuter rail for those who flee to the exurbs for cheaper houses. The cost-of-living caveat: BEA RPP for the DC metro runs near 110–112% of national, driven by housing and the high local tax stack. The compensating feature is stability — DC household incomes don't crater in recessions, and the federal-contractor ecosystem provides a salary floor most cities can't match.
What this income feels like
Top 20% in DC is a dual-income policy-and-professional household — one in government or a contractor, one in law, consulting, or an association — that owns a rowhouse in Petworth or Capitol Hill or rents a sleek 1BR in Logan Circle for around $2,400. You Metro to work and complain about single-tracking on weekends, you pay DC's steep local income tax (or moved to Arlington to dodge it), and your social calendar is suspiciously full of policy-adjacent happy hours. Childcare runs $2,200–$2,800/month. The job is stable in a way coastal tech never is — the federal anchor doesn't blink in a downturn.
Top 20% reality check
- DC income is recession-resistant in a way no other big city's is — the federal payroll and contractor base don't shed jobs in downturns, so the salary floor holds.
- DC's progressive local income tax tops out near 10.75%, which is exactly why so many high earners live in Arlington or Bethesda and commute in.
- A renovated rowhouse in Capitol Hill or Petworth is genuinely buyable on a top-20% income — the Northeast Corridor's rare case where a single-family in the city isn't a fantasy.
Cost-of-living reality
The median gross rent in Washington is $1,900/month, or roughly 21.5% of the median household income on an annualized basis. The national rent-burden average is about 30%, and anything north of that is treated as rent-burdened by HUD. Washington's median home value is $724,600, a price-to-income ratio of 6.8× — healthy markets run 3–4×, expensive coastal markets routinely exceed 6×. Mean one-way commute is 30.3 minutes, which compounds the real cost of living here for anyone not working remote.
Nearby cities
Washington community discussions
Local subreddits where cost-of-living and income questions get answered by residents. External links, open in a new tab.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good income in Washington?
In Washington, DC, the median household income is $106,287. Earning above $138,274 puts you in the top 40%, and clearing $235,940 places you in the top 20%. A "good" income depends on household size and housing choice, but $235,940 is a useful upper-middle-class threshold for this city.
How does Washington's median income compare to the US?
Washington's median household income of $106,287 is about 35.3% higher than the US median of $78,538 (ACS 2023 5-year, matched to the city vintage). Raw comparisons understate local cost-of-living; Washington's median rent of $1,900 and median home value of $724,600 are the relevant offsets.
What percentile is $100K in Washington?
A household income of $100,000 ranks at roughly the 46th percentile in Washington. That is interpolated from the local ACS quintile breakpoints: p20 $37,090, p40 $81,976, p60 $138,274, p80 $235,940, p95 $687,000.
Is Washington expensive to live in?
Median gross rent in Washington is $1,900/month, which is 21.5% of the median household income on an annualized basis — compared to the national rent-burden average of about 30%. The median home value is $724,600, a price-to-income ratio of 6.8× (healthy markets run 3-4×, expensive markets 6×+).
How is this calculated?
Figures come from the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 2023 5-year estimates for Washington, District of Columbia. Income percentiles are city-level approximations derived from ACS B19080 household income quintile upper limits, interpolated from the local median and distribution. Rent burden uses B25071 (median gross rent as % of household income) and mean commute uses B08303.
Methodology & data sources
Calculations on this page use published benchmarks from US federal statistical agencies. Percentile breakpoints are interpolated linearly between published cells. Figures are in current-year USD unless noted. Numbers are educational estimates, not personalized financial advice.