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Here's the Income You Need To Be in the Top 10% of Americans

A look at what the IRS numbers actually say about reaching the top of the income ladder.

By Chris Lewis, CEPF , Edited by Laura Hohenstein

Updated Oct. 14, 2026

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Ever wonder where you'd land if every tax return in the country were lined up from the highest income to the lowest? The IRS publishes that breakdown every year, so it's possible to see where you stand financially.

Here's where the line for the top 10% sits for tax year 2023, plus how it compares with the other cutoffs.

Editor's note: Figures come from IRS Statistics of Income data for tax year 2023 and exclude returns filed by people claimed as dependents. Each return can represent one person or a married couple filing jointly.

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How much do you need to earn to crack the top 10%?

Threshold: $187,608

To rank in the top 10% of individual tax returns excluding dependent filers, a return needed adjusted gross income of at least $187,608, according to IRS data for tax year 2023. That's the cutoff point, not an average. Any return at or above that figure fell within the top tenth of all individual returns that year.

It's worth remembering this is a floor, not a typical amount.

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What exactly counts as 'income' here?

These thresholds are based on adjusted gross income, or AGI, reported on individual tax returns. That's not household income, and it isn't salary alone.

It's also measured per tax return, not per person. A married couple filing jointly counts as a single return, so their combined income is what gets ranked, not each spouse's income separately. That distinction matters when you're comparing these numbers to your own paycheck.

How much of the nation's income and taxes the top 10% covers

For tax year 2023, the top 10% of returns accounted for 47.60% of reported adjusted gross income and 70.54% of federal individual income tax in the IRS data, which exclude dependent filers. That same group reported 70.54% of all income tax on individual returns that year.

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How the top 10% stacks up against other cutoffs

Here's where the other lines fell for tax year 2023. The top 5% required adjusted gross income of at least $272,209, the top 1% required at least $675,602, and the top 25% required at least $105,604. The cutoff for the upper half of returns included in the ranking, the top 50%, was $53,801.

These lines have been moving, though not all in the same direction. The top 10% floor was $169,800 for tax year 2021, $178,611 for 2022, and $187,608 for 2023. The top 5% floor went from $252,840 to $261,591 to $272,209 over those three years, the top 25% floor from $94,440 to $99,857 to $105,604, and the top 50% floor from $46,637 to $50,339 to $53,801. The top 1% floor is the exception: it was $682,577 in 2021, dipped to $663,164 in 2022, then rose to $675,602 in 2023.

How to see where your own income lands

Pull up your 2023 Form 1040 and find adjusted gross income on line 11 to compare your return with the thresholds for that same tax year.
If you file jointly, use the AGI already reported on your joint return, which includes both spouses' income after applicable adjustments.
Compare your number against the whole ladder, from the top 50% cutoff up to the top 1%, instead of a single line.
Check where your income would have landed in earlier tax years too, since the cutoffs shift from year to year.

Bottom line

Looking at these figures and reviewing your financial plan could help you grow your wealth for the future. For tax year 2023, it took adjusted gross income of at least $187,608 on an individual return to rank in the top 10%, according to the IRS. These figures exclude dependent filers.

That group reported 47.60% of all adjusted gross income and 70.54% of all income tax on individual returns that year.

The top 10%, 5%, 25%, and 50% floors all rose in each of the past three tax years, while the top 1% floor fell in 2022 before rising again in 2023. Where you land depends on adjusted gross income reported per return, not household earnings or salary alone.

FAQs

Does being in the top 10% mean you're rich?

It depends on how you define rich. Reaching the top 10% for tax year 2023 took adjusted gross income of at least $187,608 on a return, which put that return among the highest-earning tenth of all individual returns. That's still well below the top 1% threshold of $675,602.

How does the top 1% compare with the top 10%?

For tax year 2023, a return needed adjusted gross income of at least $675,602 to make the top 1%. That group reported 20.63% of all adjusted gross income and 38.40% of all income tax on individual returns, compared with 47.60% and 70.54% for the top 10%.

How has the top 10% cutoff changed in recent years?

The top 10% floor was $169,800 for tax year 2021, $178,611 for tax year 2022, and $187,608 for tax year 2023, based on IRS data. It moved higher in each of those years.

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