State ranking

Income gaps between counties, state by state

The ratio of the highest to the lowest county median household income in each state, SAIPE 2023.

Short answer

Virginia has the widest gap: Loudoun County at $173,655 against Norton city at $42,618, a ratio of 4.07×. Delaware has the narrowest, 1.20×.
#1 Virginia
4.07×
  1. 01Virginia4.07×
  2. 02Colorado3.90×
  3. 03New Mexico3.78×
  4. 04Georgia3.60×
  5. 05Tennessee3.48×
  6. 06Kentucky3.45×
  7. 07Texas3.27×
  8. 08South Dakota3.11×
  9. 09New York3.00×
  10. 10California2.97×
  11. 11Mississippi2.87×
  12. 12Maryland2.70×
  13. 13Alabama2.64×
  14. 14West Virginia2.64×
  15. 15Louisiana2.59×
  16. 16Ohio2.56×
  17. 17Kansas2.56×
  18. 18Arkansas2.52×
  19. 19Illinois2.52×
  20. 20Pennsylvania2.51×
  21. 21South Carolina2.48×
  22. 22Alaska2.48×
  23. 23North Carolina2.44×
  24. 24Utah2.41×
  25. 25Indiana2.39×
  26. 26Missouri2.39×
  27. 27Minnesota2.39×
  28. 28Nebraska2.31×
  29. 29Wyoming2.30×
  30. 30Florida2.24×
  31. 31Oregon2.23×
  32. 32Michigan2.19×
  33. 33New Jersey2.18×
  34. 34Washington2.11×
  35. 35North Dakota2.11×
  36. 36Oklahoma2.10×
  37. 37Wisconsin2.08×
  38. 38Arizona2.02×
  39. 39Maine2.00×
  40. 40Montana1.91×
  41. 41Iowa1.88×
  42. 42New Hampshire1.84×
  43. 43Massachusetts1.84×
  44. 44Idaho1.78×
  45. 45Vermont1.65×
  46. 46Nevada1.53×
  47. 47Connecticut1.50×
  48. 48Hawaii1.40×
  49. 49Rhode Island1.35×
  50. 50Delaware1.20×
Richest ÷ poorest county. Rank 1 at the top.
GeorgiaIndianaMaineMinnesotaNorth DakotaColoradoAlaskaArkansasIllinoisIowaMississippiNew YorkTennesseeTexasVirginiaKansasAlabamaNorth CarolinaMichiganMissouriNebraskaOhioSouth CarolinaVermontWisconsinCaliforniaKentuckySouth DakotaNevadaFloridaMarylandPennsylvaniaArizonaRhode IslandIdahoOregonMontanaWashingtonWest VirginiaNew MexicoNew HampshireOklahomaUtahWyomingHawaiiLouisianaMassachusettsConnecticutNew JerseyDelawareDistrict of Columbia

Darker states rank higher. Alaska and Hawaii are insets.

Richest and poorest county in each state

StateHighestLowestRatio
VirginiaLoudoun County $173,655Norton city $42,6184.07×
ColoradoDouglas County $144,807Mineral County $37,1083.90×
New MexicoLos Alamos County $146,208Luna County $38,6413.78×
GeorgiaForsyth County $136,347Clay County $37,8583.60×
TennesseeWilliamson County $136,007Hancock County $39,0773.48×
KentuckyOldham County $120,818Owsley County $35,0003.45×
TexasCollin County $120,149Brooks County $36,6953.27×
South DakotaLincoln County $102,130Buffalo County $32,8033.11×
New YorkNassau County $140,466Bronx County $46,8943.00×
CaliforniaSanta Clara County $154,573Modoc County $51,9962.97×
MississippiMadison County $82,057Claiborne County $28,5792.87×
MarylandHoward County $140,113Somerset County $51,8412.70×
AlabamaShelby County $90,280Perry County $34,1762.64×
West VirginiaJefferson County $92,747McDowell County $35,1612.64×
LouisianaAscension Parish $89,558East Carroll Parish $34,6042.59×
OhioDelaware County $128,300Meigs County $50,1272.56×
KansasJohnson County $103,085Woodson County $40,3272.56×
ArkansasBenton County $92,632Lee County $36,7352.52×
IllinoisKendall County $114,606Alexander County $45,5502.52×
PennsylvaniaChester County $120,925Forest County $48,0842.51×
South CarolinaCharleston County $88,111Allendale County $35,4772.48×
AlaskaAleutians West $104,159Kusilvak $42,0292.48×
North CarolinaWake County $103,084Robeson County $42,1802.44×
UtahSummit County $139,848San Juan County $57,9412.41×
IndianaHamilton County $121,231Vigo County $50,6652.39×
MissouriSt. Charles County $98,765Wayne County $41,3152.39×
MinnesotaCarver County $129,437Mahnomen County $54,1772.39×
NebraskaSarpy County $101,902Garden County $44,1352.31×
WyomingTeton County $130,156Niobrara County $56,4772.30×
FloridaSt. Johns County $106,281Calhoun County $47,5232.24×
OregonWashington County $103,486Wheeler County $46,3152.23×
MichiganLivingston County $103,737Montmorency County $47,3742.19×
New JerseySomerset County $140,242Cumberland County $64,2402.18×
WashingtonKing County $120,672Ferry County $57,0902.11×
North DakotaMcKenzie County $99,157Sioux County $46,9312.11×
OklahomaCanadian County $86,539Latimer County $41,2412.10×
WisconsinSt. Croix County $103,731Menominee County $49,7912.08×
ArizonaMaricopa County $86,973Apache County $43,1212.02×
MaineCumberland County $96,255Washington County $48,1042.00×
MontanaGallatin County $90,942Wheatland County $47,5451.91×
IowaDallas County $102,189Decatur County $54,4091.88×
New HampshireRockingham County $109,660Coos County $59,5921.84×
MassachusettsNorfolk County $123,449Hampden County $67,1551.84×
IdahoTeton County $94,895Lewis County $53,2121.78×
VermontChittenden County $96,142Essex County $58,3591.65×
NevadaStorey County $88,684Mineral County $58,0391.53×
ConnecticutWestern Connecticut Planning Region $121,285South Central Connecticut Planning Region $80,9531.50×
HawaiiHonolulu County $102,382Hawaii County $73,0921.40×
Rhode IslandWashington County $101,749Providence County $75,3071.35×
DelawareNew Castle County $86,798Kent County $72,4981.20×
SAIPE 2023 median household income. Counties with no estimate are skipped.

Reading the ratio

A ratio of 2 means the richest county's median household earns twice the poorest county's. A state with many counties has more chances for an extreme at either end, so compare states of similar county counts. Compare any two counties directly with the compare two counties tool, and see how SAIPE builds the estimates in the SAIPE income guide.

Questions people ask

Which state has the biggest income gap between counties?

Virginia, where the richest county's median household income is 4.07× the poorest's.

Which state has the smallest gap?

Delaware, at 1.20×.

Is this a measure of inequality?

Only between counties. It compares county medians and says nothing about the spread of incomes inside a county.

Suggested citation

Online Map Tools. "Income gaps between counties, state by state." Published 2026-09-30. https://onlinemaptools.com/rankings/states-by-county-income-gap. Data: Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates; Census SAIPE program.

Journalists, students and researchers may quote these figures and reuse the table. Please credit Online Map Tools and link to this page. The underlying government data is in the public domain.

Download the data (CSV)

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  2. 02Census SAIPE program (last verified 2026-09-30)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.

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