Eight million families in the United States received incomes of $5,000 or more in 1948, according to estimates issued today by Philip Hauser, Acting Director, Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce. In contrast, 10 million had incomes under $2,000. The remaining 21 million families were in the $2,000 to $5,000 bracket. The distribution by income of the nation's 35 1/2 million families is shown below:¹

Under $1,000 •••••••••••••••• 4,100,000 families
$l,000 to $1,999 ••••••••••••• 5,600,000 families
$2,000 to $2,999 •••••••••••• 7,900,000 families
$3,000 to $3,999 •••••••••••• 8,000,000 families
$4,000 to $4,999 •••••••••••• 5,000,000 families
$5,000 to $5,999 •••••••••••• 3,100,000 families
$6,000 to $9,999 •••••••••••• 3,800,000 families
$10,000 and over •••••••••••• 1,100,000 families

The income of the average (median) family was $3,200, or about $150 higher than in 1947 and about $600 higher than in the war years of 1944 and 1945. In contrast to the increase which was recorded for families (groups of two or more related persons), there was no increase for the 8 million individuals not in families who had the same median income, $1,000, in 1948 as they had had during the preceding four years.

__________
¹ These figures correspond to the percentage distribution given in table 1 of this report.