About this application: This application provides summary profiles showing frequently requested data items from various US Census Bureau programs. Profiles are available for the nation, states, and counties.
Median household income (in 2018 dollars), 2014-2018 - (US Dollars)
County
Value
Bernalillo
51,643
Catron
42,480
Chaves
43,197
Cibola
37,368
Colfax
33,783
Curry
46,182
De Baca
31,028
Dona Ana
39,164
Eddy
62,982
Grant
37,880
Guadalupe
24,085
Harding
30,875
Hidalgo
36,339
Lea
59,797
Lincoln
42,267
Los Alamos
115,248
Luna
27,377
McKinley
31,674
Mora
26,968
Otero
42,752
Quay
27,075
Roosevelt
40,775
San Juan
50,582
San Miguel
31,660
Sandoval
59,420
Santa Fe
59,192
Sierra
30,451
Socorro
36,146
Taos
36,758
Torrance
37,218
Union
37,936
Valencia
45,084
Value for New Mexico (US Dollars): $48,059
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) and Puerto Rico Community Survey (PRCS), 5-Year Estimates. The PRCS is part of the Census Bureau's ACS, customized for Puerto Rico. Both Surveys are updated every year.
Definition
Income in the Past 12 Months - Income of Households: This includes the income of the householder and all other individuals 15 years old and over in the household, whether they are related to the householder or not. Because many households consist of only one person, average household income is usually less than average family income. Although the household income statistics cover the past 12 months, the characteristics of individuals and the composition of households refer to the time of interview. Thus, the income of the household does not include amounts received by individuals who were members of the household during all or part of the past 12 months if these individuals no longer resided in the household at the time of interview. Similarly, income amounts reported by individuals who did not reside in the household during the past 12 months but who were members of the household at the time of interview are included. However, the composition of most households was the same during the past 12 months as at the time of interview.
The median divides the income distribution into two equal parts: one-half of the cases falling below the median income and one-half above the median. For households and families, the median income is based on the distribution of the total number of households and families including those with no income. The median income for individuals is based on individuals 15 years old and over with income. Median income for households, families, and individuals is computed on the basis of a standard distribution. For the complete definition, go to ACS subject definitions "Income in the Past 12 Months."
Source and Accuracy
This Fact is based on data collected in the American Community Survey (ACS) and the Puerto Rico Community Survey (PRCS) conducted annually by the U.S. Census Bureau. A sample of over 3.5 million housing unit addresses is interviewed each year over a 12 month period. This Fact (estimate) is based on five years of ACS and PRCS sample data and describes the average value of person, household and housing unit characteristics over this period of collection.
Statistics from all surveys are subject to sampling and nonsampling error. Sampling error is the uncertainty between an estimate based on a sample and the corresponding value that would be obtained if the estimate were based on the entire population (as from a census). Measures of sampling error are provided in the form of margins of error for all estimates included with ACS and PRCS published products. The Census Bureau recommends that data users incorporate this information into their analyses, as sampling error in survey estimates could impact the conclusions drawn from the results. The data for each geographic area are presented together with margins of error at Using margins of error. A more detailed explanation of margins of error and a demonstration of how to use them is provided below.
For more information on sampling and estimation methodology, confidentiality, and sampling and nonsampling errors, please see the Multiyear Accuracy (US) and the Multiyear Accuracy (Puerto Rico) documents at "Documentation - Accuracy of the data."
Margin of Error
As mentioned above, ACS estimates are based on a sample and are subject to sampling error. The margin of error measures the degree of uncertainty caused by sampling error. The margin of error is used with an ACS estimate to construct a confidence interval about the estimate. The interval is formed by adding the margin of error to the estimate (the upper bound) and subtracting the margin of error from the estimate (the lower bound). It is expected with 90 percent confidence that the interval will contain the full population value of the estimate. The following example is for demonstrating purposes only. Suppose the ACS reported that the percentage of people in a state who were 25 years and older with a bachelor's degree was 21.3 percent and that the margin of error associated with this estimate was 0.7 percent. By adding and subtracting the margin of error from the estimate, we calculate the 90-percent confidence interval for this estimate:
Therefore, we can be 90 percent confident that the percent of the population 25 years and older having a bachelor's degree in a state falls somewhere between 20.6 percent and 22.0 percent.
