The United States has some of the highest levels of income and wealth inequality in the world. U.S. Federal Reserve data shows that the wealthiest 10% of Americans control $93.8 trillion, more than double the $40.3 trillion in the hands of the remaining 90% of Americans. 

The income and wealth divide only appears to be growing wider. A January 2020 report published by the Pew Research Center found that over the last four decades, income growth for the top 5% of families by earnings has far outpaced income growth for families in the lower income strata. 

In a nation as large as the U.S., varied levels of income inequality may be expected, and in a few areas in the country, extreme wealth and extreme poverty exist side by side. In nearly every state, there is at least one city where income inequality is far more pronounced than it is on average nationwide.

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified the city with the widest income gap in each state. Cities are ranked by their Gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality based on the distribution of income across a population on a 0 to 1 scale — 0 representing perfect equality and 1 representing the highest possible level of inequality. For the purposes of this story, cities are defined as any place covered by the census with populations over 25,000.

Though each city on this list has the highest degree of income inequality in its state, Gini scores vary considerably — from 0.430 up to 0.606. Nationwide, the Gini coefficient stands at 0.482. 

Causes behind rising inequality in the United States are complex and varied. A report published by the National Bureau of Economic Research ties the rising disparity to a range of economic factors, including globalization, technological advancement, a stagnant minimum wage, and the decline of labor unions.

Click here to see the city with the widest income gap in every state
Click here to read our detailed methodology