{"id":841117,"date":"2026-09-08T23:38:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T23:38:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/841117\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T23:38:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T23:38:14","slug":"how-much-money-it-takes-to-be-upper-middle-class-in-california-revealed-in-new-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/841117\/","title":{"rendered":"How much money it takes to be upper-middle class in California revealed in new study"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Collage<\/a> Collage of aerial views of Palm Springs with mountains and residential areas, and Santa Monica with a beach, pier, and city buildings. <\/p>\n

The cost of calling yourself affluent in California appears to be creeping ever higher. <\/p>\n

Newly-shared analysis reveals just how much cash you need in the Golden State<\/a> to call yourself upper-middle class \u2014\u00a0and $156,000 per household is considered to be the base price of admission. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Affording the good life in the Golden State comes with an increasingly high price tag, according to a WalletHub study. Getty Images <\/p>\n

The Empire State is a relative bargain, it turns out \u2014\u00a0with just $133k or more needed to be comfortable. <\/p>\n

Topping the list is Massachusetts, where you need an income of $163k and up. The state is closely followed by New Jersey, which rang in at $162k, and Maryland, where $160k is the number. <\/p>\n

Other states over $150k include Hawaii, New Hampshire, Washington, Colorado, and Utah. <\/p>\n

The average income needed to be considered upper middle class nationwide stands at $126k, according to the report. <\/p>\n

Looking to stretch your hard-earned dollar further? For best results, you’ll have to move to Mississippi \u2014\u00a0where all you need to consider yourself comfortable is $92k per year. <\/p>\n

Other states squeaking in under the $100k mark were Louisiana, Arkansas, and West Virginia. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Pricey Palm Springs is just one place where you’ll have to hustle harder to call yourself affluent these days. Getty Images <\/p>\n

The study was posted on the heels of a survey<\/a> which found one in four Americans felt they needed at least $150k a year to live comfortably. A whopping 77% confessed to feelings of financial insecurity. <\/p>\n

“Times have shifted,” said Bankrate Economic Analyst Sarah Foster, at the time. <\/p>\n

“Getting rich may have once been what many Americans fantasized about, but now, simply living comfortably feels like the new aspiration, as economic challenges make financial stability a rare luxury,” Foster said. <\/p>\n

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Last month, still another survey showed how much Californians would need to earn to consider themselves “rich”<\/a> \u2014\u00a0defined as being in the 2.5% of earners in an area. <\/p>\n

In the ultra-rich Silicon Valley, according to the numbers, you’d need to earn $878k per year \u2014\u00a0the highest in the state. <\/p>\n

To live well in the beautiful Napa Valley, you’d need an income of $798k. And in the San Francisco area, the required income would be $782k and above. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> Those living in San Francisco need more than $782,000 per household, per year, in order to call themselves upper-middle class. Getty Images <\/p>\n

By contrast, Southern California is a relative bargain \u2014\u00a0just $535k and up is all that’s required to be rich in Los Angeles, the survey said. <\/p>\n

According to the US Census Bureau, the median household income<\/a> nationwide is currently $83,000. <\/p>\n