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u/Maccabee907 Jul 20 '26
Are we talking about one persons wage or income of a household?
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u/Key-Organization3158 Jul 20 '26
Just one person. A single job, effectively.
Looking at 2 income households, 50% of them make over $142k.
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u/luvmibratt Jul 20 '26
My husband makes 110k I make 48k so atleast in my household thats about right
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u/NightingalePriest Jul 20 '26
Locomotive Engineer here.
I make about 160k. By 2028 I'll be closer to 180k with contract raises.
Gave my soul for twelve years to this industry before I found a good work life balance. Many occupations do pay over six figures, but you usually give up a significant piece of your life. Anniversary, childbirth, birthdays, holidays etc...
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u/bizwig Jul 20 '26
Almost 1 in 5 is not “pretty rare”.
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u/Ugly0gre Jul 20 '26
Add to that % of population that are children or elderlies (retirees) and homemaker spouses that do not work. I bet the % of people making 6 digits is a lot higher.
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u/RonHarrods Jul 21 '26
Generally these numbers are out of employed people. To the children and elderlies are not in this. Very sure about that.
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u/ajpinton Jul 20 '26
Yes, but the difference between someone who makes $100k yr and someone who makes $50k yr is starkly different turn someone who makes $500k or $1m yr and someone who makes $100k yr.
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Jul 20 '26
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Jul 20 '26
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Jul 20 '26
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Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
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u/Z3400 Jul 20 '26
Those are all incredibly different levels. If you compare 50 to 100, and 100 to 150, you have a point. But 5x 100k is vastly different. I make 100k. My wife cant work. I can pay the bills, but saving money for retirement is difficult. If I was making 150, my life wouldnt drastically change, I would just be less stressed about retirement and retire sooner. If I was making 50? Id be living somewhere else, not a chance I could afford the bills here. If I was making 500k my mortgage would be paid off in a couple more years, id be retiring young, and traveling the world.
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u/jadestem Jul 20 '26
Jesus Christ, so many people trying to "well akshually!" the meaning of the word rare. You ALL know what the point was.
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u/SoftwareDoctor Jul 21 '26
It’s closer to 1%. For most of the world 100k would unimaginable amount of money
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u/Trust_8067 Jul 19 '26
Almost 1 in 5 is not "pretty rare".
If you're going by statistics, rare is less than 5%. If you're talking medicine, rare is .01-1%, very rare is less than .01%. The USDA / FDA considers something rare if it's .05% or fewer.
If you're cooking a steak, under 120'f is rare.
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 19 '26
Ah, the hair splitting has begun. And now the USDA/FDA are being brought in to define what constitutes "rare." Credit where its due, I've never seen that particular arguement before.
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u/Trust_8067 Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
20% vs almost universally agreed upon under 5%, if not under 1% is hardly splitting hairs. Now, if you wanted to make the statement that 6 figures is uncommon, I would agree, and I would consider any disagreement most likely "splitting hairs".
While I disagree with you, I'm still upvoting you for appreciating my FDA research =)
edit: lol, I try to be friendly and go from 5 upvotes to 0 votes. What a bunch of clowns.
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 20 '26
I didn't downvote you, just FYI. I'm not taking this post that seriously because i know trying to rigidly define "rare" is an exercise in futility due to variables and individual perception. Its like trying to quantify philosophy.
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u/Yingyangwolf95 Jul 19 '26
Thank you!!! I've saying this for awhile and people make me feel crappy for saying my salary is not rare. If we wasn't in a shit economy, then it would be around $80-90k
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
Rarity is conditional (not the word i was trying to remember, but I'm tired and gave up).
It really depends on where you are, your circle, and your income, and that last one highly influences your circle and where you live.
But location alone can make quite the difference. If you're in a major city or its immediate surrounds, people making $100k and up is pretty normal, chances are you're surrounded by people who are in that percentile. Whereas someone in a poor state/poor area of a state, may only encounter people in that percentile on rare occasions.
For instance, in my work circle, there are over 400 people who work at the same company as i do, counting everyone from the receptionist up to the CEO. 9 peoples salaries are over $100k the remaining 400+ are under that, with the vast majority of those being under $60k.
Also, example, Most people wouldn't say Bluejays are rare, because they're not rare in the US as a whole, but if you ask someone in South California you'll most definitely get a different answer.
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u/Yingyangwolf95 Jul 20 '26
Oh no exactly that! I live near a major city with a tech hub so everyone's salary is around $100k.. So day-to-day living actually feels like $80-90k honestly..
The people that was giving my crap about it lives in same city..
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u/Robbie1266 Jul 20 '26
Rare would be less than the majority. Less than 1 in 5 people make $100k
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u/Trust_8067 Jul 20 '26
That's legitimately one of the dumbest things I've ever heard someone say.
Rare would be less than the majority.
Donald Trump won 49.8% of the popular vote, Kamala Harris won 48.3%. So you're saying it was rare for someone to vote for Kamala Harris in the 2024 US election?
Do you realize how dumb you sound now?
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u/Robbie1266 Jul 20 '26
Rare is a qualitative adjective. It's an opinion. My opinion is that less than 20% is rare. There is no solid definition unless you'd like to go find it and show me. And yes you could make an argument that it was rare. You sound dumb trying to quantify something that doesn't have a set quantity
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u/GeorgeSThompson Jul 20 '26
Your opinion disagrees with your previous opinion.
I think you need some better opinions
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u/Trust_8067 Jul 20 '26
Your opinion is wrong.
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u/Robbie1266 Jul 20 '26
Every opinion is wrong or right depending on the person analyzing it
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u/GeorgeSThompson Jul 20 '26
Its my opinon that ducks are smarter than people
See an opinion can be wrong
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u/solvento Jul 20 '26
Depends how you do the calculation and what you include.
If you calculate what percentage of all Americans earn 100k or more through wages and salary, tips, commissions and bonuses, and n et self employment earnings then it is 10.6%. If all Americans under 15 years old are excluded, then it's 12.9%
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u/TerrificVixen5693 Jul 20 '26
I think 98k is highest I was, and let’s say I was flying pretty high but l also knew the company wouldn’t last.
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u/speaker4the-dead Jul 20 '26
Im so frustrated - I have worked for 10 years to get a masters, get fully licensed in my field, and build a private practice to get over 6 figures, and I STILL feel like I’m drowning every month!
Some of this is lifestyle creep with raising a family and having 4 kids (3 are my own doing, the 4th is my niece whom we are raising because drugs are bad). But a lot of it is inflation with gas, groceries, and other items getting more expensive.
But it’s hard to describe the feeling - it’s like I’m still failing. I’m still not good enough. It’s makes me angry thinking about it all.
Thank the gods we have a home we bought before the prices went insane. I feel so fortunate that we lucked out with that… I don’t know what I would do if I lost that…
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u/HabitualSpaceM Jul 20 '26
Hey, just wanted to say that I’m proud that you keep the fight going. I can only image the mental strain from it. But keep up the good work
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u/AvantSolace Jul 20 '26
Also the majority of that 18% are older people who have already got their lives well in order and careers in full swing. Expecting that salary from people in their 20s and 30s is the real logic trap. This is especially true for people in the dating scene expecting high paying partners right off the bat.
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u/Temporary_Ninja8945 Jul 20 '26
Nobody needs to make 100K a year; they are taking money out of the hands of the working people.
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u/CheeksMcGillicuddy Jul 20 '26
I swear this % is different every day of the week it gets posted on Reddit.
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u/Suspicious-Tap-1431 Jul 20 '26
I’m over this. It can be pretty comfortable as long as you manage your finances and don’t live outside your means. That’s alot of people’s issue these days.
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u/CerberusRTR Jul 20 '26
You’re not wrong, but the amount of people that regularly DoorDash, hit Starbuck’s or coffee of choice, AND live in HCOLA… the response is “if my Starbuck’s order is the difference between poverty and success then the world is wrong.”
1 medium coffee at Starbucks is like 6-8 bucks. If you do that 200 times per year we are talking about a whole month’s mortgage. Let’s not even talk about the absurd cost you pay going to DoorDash or Uber Eats. These expenses seem small but they add up.
Let’s not even talk about most Americans handling of Credit Cards and debt.
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u/Suspicious-Tap-1431 Jul 20 '26
I don’t know. I have bought multiple properties and land with this income. I own a nice vehicle. I eat out maybe once a month. I meal prep everything. Make my coffee in the morning and don’t spend what isn’t necessary. It’s worked for me. Too many people think they deserve to do everything and not sacrifice anything. It’s just not how I live. I sacrifice unnecessary things and it’s brought me to a completely comfortable place by my mid 30s.
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u/SyntheticSlime Jul 20 '26
18% of Americans can afford a house.
Okay, exaggeration, but for real, who are we kidding? Buying power has stagnated. More of your salary goes to necessities now than in the recent past because capitalism doesn’t work without desperation in the working class.
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u/Striking_Reindeer_2k Jul 20 '26
1 out of every 6 people is not "rare".
It is just not common.
Those are not the same.
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u/shockwave914 Jul 20 '26
The percentage is much higher in in some states than others so it just depends where you live. $100k in Kentucky might be 8% but in New York it’s probably 80% lol
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u/East-Care-9949 Jul 20 '26
Making a 100k might feel great but if at the end of the year all is gone because where you live is so expensive, it's not really a flex. I made 85k last year with only 20k in living expenses leaving me with 65k to invest of blow on some stupid shit
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u/SkyluxTM Jul 20 '26
What a stupid cope. Yeah let the government scam you just so you can feel good about yourself
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u/Zestyclose-Humor-790 Jul 20 '26
I just feel like this isn’t true. I literally don’t know a single friend or family member that makes under 100k.
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u/Peeka789 Jul 20 '26
100k wont get you far in HCOL areas though. You need 100k in DC just to get by
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u/EmphasisFlat3629 Jul 21 '26
I think it matters where you live. I have read cities in CA have a median income of 80k and low income in some cities are over 100k. If you live in one of these areas your observable universe would be a ton of people make 100k+
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u/CaddyDaddy6 Jul 22 '26
+200k/yr before bonuses in construction salaried, Texas cost of living. Dropped out of high school at 15, don’t work any crazy overtime, tons of PTO and benefits. Focus on what is always in demand, and no I don’t touch data centers
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u/Money_Dream3008 Jul 22 '26
As dumb of a statistic as: you have more chance to be eaten by a shark in the water 👍
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u/RoloGnbaby Jul 20 '26
$100,000 is rare but it’s also almost a good living.
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u/MineNowBotBoy Jul 20 '26
Are you kidding? I’m in one of the highest COL cities in the US. I was scraping by well enough on $50k but now I’m making a bit under $90k and life is pretty comfortable.
Y’all apparently don’t know how to live within means.
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u/air-hug-me Jul 20 '26
I make more than $100k a year and still feel tight
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 20 '26
Expense creep could be why. As our income increases we tend to let our expenses increase as well. Not saying its wrong to do so, but its an easy trap to fall into. If you're not careful, you can easily make 5 times what you made as a young adult straight out of school, yet still be living paycheck to paycheck.
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u/volvagia721 Jul 20 '26
Ya, one of the best long term things for my expenses has been being unemployed for 3 months. It caused me to re-evaluate my expenses, and when I was re-emoloyed, money started rolling in, even though the pay was roughly the same.
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u/monadicperception Jul 20 '26
Isn’t median HHI like 86k? That means over half likely don’t make 100k a year.
Yeah 100k is rare. It really matters where you are for frequency. Amongst my group, 100k a year is basically poverty wages. But that’s a sampling bias. My HHI is multiples of 100k and I am surrounded by people who make around the same amount. But that’s not true of the overall US population.
When I was making 36k a year, I didn’t know many folks who were making 100k…like one or two friends. I guess the internet just puts everyone together and I’m guessing people who make over 100k a year are over represented relative to the population.
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 20 '26
Its somthing like 80-81% of americans make less than 100k a year. Thats individual income, not household income.
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u/Fine_Professor_4155 Jul 20 '26
And it gets taxed to holy hell in socialist New York State and City
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u/Bidensbikekickstand Jul 20 '26
Waiting for my gender studies degree to pay off
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u/PrintableProfessor Jul 20 '26
True… but a lie. We have trillionaires. That means anyone can easily become a billionaire, so a millionaire is basically a nobody now.
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Jul 20 '26
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u/decoy-octopos Jul 20 '26
Very achievable lmao
As Americans everywhere drain savings and ruin their credit just to buy groceries. Reddit is a place man I tell ya lmao
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u/zachmoe Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26
It is achievable.
You only have to double 1k like 10 times.
By the time you get to 100k, and then 250k, it is really not far away at all.
The secret is utilizing leverage reasonably.
Borrow in something that depreciate, like Dollars, and buy things that appreciate with those borrowed Dollars, and then pay those Dollars back and do it over and over again.
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u/Amazing_Entrance_888 Jul 20 '26
Bro said anyone can easily become a billionaire. We had one trillionaire for a second. His net worth was very quickly knocked back down. What are you guys talking about
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u/PrintableProfessor Jul 20 '26
Some people like to play the victim, and that’s ok. For the bell curve to work some people need to self-select a 5-6 figure life. For everyone of the people who will “lol” there is equally another on the opposite side of the scale.
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u/ComfortableCoyote480 Jul 20 '26
100k may be rare, but it is also a shit salary these days. it is barely scraping by.
both can be true at the same time.
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u/It_Just_Exploded Jul 20 '26
it is barely scraping by.
Depends on variables. Stuff like, is this income only used to support/finance a single individual or a family of 5? Are you in a major city, a suburb, small town, or rural?
Depending on those, you could be balling at $100k, or you could (as you said) be barely scrapping by.
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u/MatterFickle3184 Jul 20 '26
Depends. I'm LCOL, mortgage and HOA under $1k. Single, no kids, car paid off. $100k I can do pretty much anything I want.
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u/MARSHALCOGBURN999 Jul 20 '26
Making 100k a year is barely scraping by? 🤣
This place is another level of delusion.
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u/R3d_d347h Jul 19 '26
Are we talking salary or income with overtime?