US Income Inequality by State: 2024 Rankings Revealed

Ever walk through a city and feel like you’re in two different countries at once? One block has private security and Teslas parked out front, the next has people lining up at a food bank. That gut punch reminder that the “American Dream” doesn’t feel the same depending on which side of the income line you were born.

I’ve been digging into the fresh 2024 numbers on income inequality across the states, and honestly? Some of the results stopped me cold. We all know the wealth gap is growing, but seeing it broken down state by state makes it hit harder.

America’s Growing Income Divide in One Brutal Metric

The standard way economists measure inequality is the Gini coefficient – think of it as a score from 0 (everyone earns exactly the same) to 1 (one person earns everything). The United States as a whole sits at 0.48 right now. That’s higher than almost every other developed nation. For context, most of Western Europe hovers in the 0.28–0.34 range.

But the national number hides massive regional differences. In some states you’d swear perfect equality is almost within reach. In others… it feels like we’re living in a modern Gilded Age.

The Most Unequal Places in America (2024)

Coming in tied for the worst – or most unequal – are Washington, D.C. and New York, both clocking in at a Gini of 0.52. That’s basically South Africa levels of inequality.

In D.C., the top 20% of households earn 27 times more than the bottom 20%. Twenty-seven. Let that sink in while you’re stuck in traffic next to a Bentley on your way to split a $20 pizza with three roommates.

New York isn’t far behind, and it’s easy to see why when you realize the state is home to more billionaires than anywhere except California. Since 2019, the real wages of NYC’s top 3% shot up 34.5% – more than triple the growth of every other income bracket. Meanwhile, subway fares keep rising and rent eats half of most paychecks.

“When the top 1% capture almost all wage gains after a recovery, something is deeply broken in the system.”

– Economic Policy Institute researcher

The Top 10 Most Unequal States & Districts (2024 Gini)

Notice anything? A lot of the usual suspects – big coastal finance/tech hubs mixed with Southern states that never really recovered from de-industrialization.

The Surprising Equality Champions

Flip the map upside down and you’ll find Utah sitting pretty with the lowest Gini in the nation at 0.42. Alaska, Idaho, Iowa, and Wisconsin round out the top five most equal states.

Utah in particular has held this crown for years. Why? A few reasons jump out:

• One of the highest employment-to-population ratios in the country (65.4%)
• Strong culture of two-income households
• Relatively compressed wage scales even in tech (yes, really)
• Lower cost of living compared to coastal peers
• High social mobility – people actually move up the ladder here more than almost anywhere else

I’ve always found Utah fascinating because it proves you can have a booming economy and keep inequality in check – if the policy choices line up right.

The Full 50-State (Plus DC) Inequality Rankings

Here’s the complete list so you can see exactly where your state falls:

Take a second to find your state. Feels different when it’s laid out like that, doesn’t it?

Why Some “Rich” States Are So Unequal

California, Massachusetts, New York – these places have sky-high median incomes and world-famous innovation hubs. So why do they score so poorly on equality?

Simple: superstar economics. When a tiny handful of people in tech, finance, or entertainment capture almost all the upside of growth, everyone else gets left behind – even if the “average” looks good on paper. San Francisco can have both $5 million condos and tent cities three blocks apart. That’s what a 0.49 Gini looks like in real life.

The Hidden Story Behind the Numbers

Here’s what fascinates me most: inequality isn’t just about who has yachts. It shapes everything – health outcomes, crime rates, even how long kids stay in school. States with lower Gini scores tend to have higher life expectancy, lower teen pregnancy rates, and better upward mobility. The data is brutally consistent on this.

And perhaps the biggest irony? Some of the states with the worst inequality are also the economic engines pulling the entire country forward. We’re riding a rocket ship where most passengers are stuck in coach while a few ride first class – and the pilots keep telling us “a rising tide lifts all boats” while half the boats have holes in them.

Look, I’m not here to push one political solution or another. But when the top 20% take home 52% of all income while the bottom 20% scrape together 3%, it’s fair to ask whether the system is working the way we want it to.

Maybe the most hopeful takeaway is that places like Utah and Alaska show it doesn’t have to be this way. Policy matters. Culture matters. The choices we make as states – and as a nation – actually move the needle.

So where does your state rank? And more importantly – what are we going to do about it?