The yearly “What It Takes to Be Middle Class in America” report from SmartAsset details some of the salaries for those living in the DFW Metroplex.
This report utilized Pew Research’s definition of middle income – two-thirds to double the median household income – to determine the highest and lowest thresholds of 100 major U.S. cities.
Only one city in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex ranked within the top 10 of either category: Plano, which had the seventh-highest middle-class income threshold in the country.
This report determined that Plano residents need a minimum income of $72,133 to be considered middle class. The upper bounds of this category reach $217,188, and the median income for middle-class earners is $108,594.
Only one city in Texas made it into the top ten cities with the lowest middle-class income thresholds: Lubbock, which ranks ninth with a threshold of just $36,297.
Lubbock also has an upper threshold of only $108,902 and a median income of $54,451, making it one of the most affordable cities for those looking to be considered “middle class.”
Although Plano was the only city within the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex ranked within the top ten of either category, other cities within the metroplex were slated near the middle of these rankings.
Irving has the 43rd lowest middle-class income threshold of the cities, with residents needing to make between $52,885 and $158,670 to be considered “middle class.”
Fort Worth followed closely behind with the 46th lowest threshold to be considered “middle class,” with a lower bound of $51,383 and an upper bound of $154,164.
The median income for middle-class residents of Cowtown was also determined to be $77,082.
Finally, to be considered “middle class,” those living in Dallas would have to make between $46,743 and $140,242 annually, with the median income of those earners being $70,121.