1、Order Code RS22627Updated October 22, 2008Who Are the “Middle Class”?Brian W. CashellSpecialist in Quantitative EconomicsGovernment and Finance DivisionSummaryThere is no consensus definition of “middle class,” neither is there an officialgovernment definition. What constitutes the middle class is r
2、elative, subjective, and noteasily defined. The mid-point in the distribution is the median, and in 2007 the medianhousehold income was $50,233. How far above and below that amount the middlestretches remains an open question. The U.S. Census Bureau has published figures for2007 breaking the income
3、distribution into quintiles, or fifths. The narrowest view ofwho might be considered middle class based on that presentation would include thosein the middle quintile, which includes households with income between $39,100 and$62,000. A more generous definition might be based on the three middle quin
4、tiles,those households with income between $20,291 and $100,000. Surveys suggest thatfrom 1% to just over 3% of the population consider themselves to be upper class.Comparing those figures with the income distribution would put the dividing linebetween middle and upper class close to, if not above,
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