California · Economy & Workforce
Income Inequality in California
How evenly household income is spread, measured by the Gini index on a 0-to-100 scale. 0 would mean every household earns exactly the same; 100 would mean a single household earns everything. A higher number means a wider gap between the top and bottom earners.
49 in 2024
#47 of 50 · Bottom tier (lower is better)
California is worse than the 50-state median (47). That's a gap of 2.
View interactive chart & trend → See full 50-state ranking →
2006 – 2024 · California only · interactive chart with US median overlay →
Recent trend
| Year | California | US median |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 49 | 46 |
| 2015 | 49 | 47 |
| 2016 | 49 | 47 |
| 2017 | 49 | 47 |
| 2018 | 49 | 47 |
| 2019 | 49 | 46 |
| 2021 | 49 | 47 |
| 2022 | 50 | 47 |
| 2023 | 49 | 47 |
| 2024 | 49 | 47 |
California vs. neighboring states
Same metric (income inequality), latest year with full state coverage. Click any name for that state's full report.
| State | Income Inequality | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Oregon | 46 | #15 of 50 |
| Nevada | 47 | #25 of 50 |
| Arizona | 46 | #22 of 50 |
How California compares (2024)
Bottom 5
| #46 | Massachusetts | 48 |
| #47 | California | 49 |
| #48 | Louisiana | 49 |
| #49 | Connecticut | 50 |
| #50 | New York | 52 |
Source and methodology
Source: Census ACS · Direction: lower is better · Unit: Gini index
Download raw CSV (all 50 states, all years)