The Woodbridge Gazette
Virginia residents are now the highest earners in the country, according to a new WalletHub report released June 3. The commonwealth topped the rankings of all 50 states and DC, beating out New York, New Jersey, Washington, and Connecticut for the top five spots.
WalletHub's ranking weighed three numbers, all adjusted for cost of living: the average income of the top 5% of earners, the overall median household income, and the average income of the bottom 20%, using May 2026 Census Bureau and Council for Community and Economic Research data.
Virginia's overall score of 67.57 was driven less by a sky-high median and more by the gap between its highest and lowest earners. The top 5% of Virginians average $545,097 a year, while the bottom 20% average $19,671. The statewide median sits at $95,339 — solidly above the national median of $83,700, but only the 17th-highest median in the country on its own. WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo noted that measuring income against the median in this way helps surface where disparities are sharpest, even in a wealthy state.
This marks the second year in a row Virginia has claimed the No. 1 spot, repeating its 2025 finish atop the list.
A Wide Gap, But Still Ahead of Other States
Virginia's income spread between rich and poor is real, but WalletHub's own analysis points out it’s smaller than in many of the other states near the top of the list. The commonwealth's top 5% ranks as the second highest in the nation, while its bottom 20% ranks fourth highest — meaning both ends of the income spectrum are outperforming their counterparts elsewhere, even if the gap between them within Virginia remains wide.
New York placed second overall, with the nation's highest-earning top 5% at $585,523 a year, but a bottom 20% averaging just $13,633 — one of the steepest gaps in the country. New Jersey came in third, with a median income of $125,766 (sixth highest nationally) and a top 5% earning $527,376. Connecticut, in fifth, saw its top earners average $543,016 against a median of $122,032.
The View from Prince William County
Locally, the numbers run even higher. Prince William County's median household income was $131,402 as of the latest Census estimate — well above both the statewide and national figures in the WalletHub report. Census Reporter data put the county's median at roughly 1.4 times Virginia's overall median.
That gap helps explain a pattern many Woodbridge and Prince William households already feel strong overall numbers driven heavily by federal, government-contracting, and tech-sector salaries, alongside a meaningful share of residents for whom the cost of living — especially housing — continues to outpace income growth.
West Virginia ranked last in the WalletHub report. Maryland came in at No. 16 nationally, and Washington, DC, ranked No. 12.
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