Leading Indicators

Income Inequality in Philadelphia – Differences by Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

In this Leading Indicator, we further contextualize Philadelphia’s income inequality with an updated comparison of income and earnings among the city’s residential groups disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and gender.

What You Need to Know

In 2020, Philadelphia’s median household income was $49,127.
Philadelphia's Black and Latinx households reported median household incomes $12,215 and $13,270 less than the city’s 2020 median, respectively.
Philadelphia’s Asian households reported a median household income roughly $2,000 more than the city’s median in 2020.
Median household income for non-Hispanic white households was roughly $20,000 greater than the city’s median, $32,000 more than Black households, and $33,000 more than Latinx households.
Only 12 of the 145 majority non-Hispanic white census tracts (roughly 8 percent) reported median household incomes below the city’s median in 2020.
Only 29 of the 145 majority non-Hispanic Black census tracts (roughly 20 percent) saw median household incomes above the city’s median in 2020.
No majority Latinx/Hispanic census tract in Philadelphia reported a median household income above the city’s median in 2020.
When comparing earnings of full-time, year-round salaried workers in Philadelphia, women consistently earned less than their male counterparts across all racial and ethnic groups.
While non-Hispanic white women earned roughly $0.87 for every non-Hispanic white male dollar earned in 2020, they saw the largest earnings gap between males and females—at $0.13—among any racial or ethnic groups.
Asian females earned $0.65 for every non-Hispanic white male dollar earned in 2020 – $0.06 less than Asian males.
Philadelphia’s Black full-time, year-round salaried workers had the smallest gap in earnings between males and females, with Black males earning $0.62 to every non-Hispanic white male dollar earned and Black females earning $0.02 less than Black males.
Latinx/Hispanic males earned more than Black females at $0.61 for every non-Hispanic white male dollar earned in 2020.
Latinx/Hispanic females saw the lowest earnings among all the racial, ethnic, and gender groups in Philadelphia at $0.54 to every non-Hispanic white male dollar earned – only slightly above half of what a non-Hispanic white male earned in the city in 2020.

Household Income Inequality by Race and Ethnicity

As we have detailed in past Leading Indicator briefs, as well as our Color of Inequality series, unequal income distributions and poverty often track along lines of race, ethnicity, and gender. This inequality stems from decades of structural bias that manifested in hiring discrimination, financial redlining, housing segregation, unequal school funding, the digital divide, underfunded public transit, and over-policing. Tracking differences in household income and earnings illustrates these differences with fixed amounts and can show progress. Figure 1 compares the median household income of different racial and ethnic households in Philadelphia in 2020.

FIGURE 1

NOTE: Data were obtained from five-year estimates of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2016-2020 American Community Survey. All racial groups (excluding “White (Non-Hispanic)”) include individuals of Latinx/Hispanic ethnicity.

In 2020, Philadelphia’s median household income was $49,127 [1]. This indicates that exactly half of the city’s households made more than this amount in 2020 while the other half made less. Figure 1 uses the city’s median household income as a baseline (or zero-line) to compare the differences among the disaggregated median household incomes of different racial and ethnic groups within the city. Positive numbers indicate that many households within that racial or ethnic group are reporting median household incomes higher than the city’s overall median, while negative numbers mean that more households within the residential group are earning significantly less. Thus, figure 2 illustrates that Philadelphia's Black and Latinx households reported median household incomes in 2020 far less than the city’s median (by $12,215 and $13,270, respectively), while Asian and non-Hispanic white households earn significantly more. In fact, median household income for non-Hispanic whites was roughly $20,000 greater than the city’s median, $32,000 more than Black households, and $33,000 more than Latinx households. Thus, figure 1 exemplifies how income inequality in Philadelphia tracks along lines of race and ethnicity.

Disaggregating by neighborhoods further emphasizes the disproportion. Using census tracts as proxy neighborhoods, figure 2 compares each neighborhood’s median household income with the city’s overall median acting as the baseline; figure 3 then maps the differentiation. Both figures also identify the racial or ethnic majority of each neighborhood’s residential population.

FIGURE 2

NOTE: Data were obtained from five-year estimates of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2016-2020 American Community Survey.

FIGURE 3

NOTE: Data were obtained from five-year estimates of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2016-2020 American Community Survey.

As seen in figure 1, figure 2 further demonstrates how income inequality in Philadelphia tracks by race and ethnicity. The majority of predominantly non-Hispanic white neighborhoods in Philadelphia reported median household incomes above the city’s median. Only 12 of the 145 majority non-Hispanic white census tracts (roughly 8 percent) reported median household incomes below the city’s median. The majority of non-Hispanic Black neighborhoods reported median household incomes well below the city’s median; only 29 of the 145 majority non-Hispanic Black neighborhoods (roughly 20 percent) saw median household incomes above the city’s median. No majority Latinx/Hispanic neighborhood reported a median household income above the city’s median in 2020.

Figure 3 shows how higher income neighborhoods predominantly concentrate around Center City and the Northwest section of the city, as well as a scattering in South Philadelphia and the Far Northeast. These areas also host a higher percentage of majority non-Hispanic white neighborhoods. Lower-income neighborhoods predominate in North Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, Southwest Philadelphia, the near Northeast section of the city, as well as a few pockets in South Philadelphia. These neighborhoods are largely non-white and see higher rates of poverty.

Income Inequality by Gender

To track how income inequality fares along gender lines, we compared the relative earnings of Philadelphia’s full-time, year-round salaried workforce across categories of race, ethnicity, and gender, using the white male dollar as a base comparison. Figure 4 shows that large wage gaps persist for women and persons of color when compared to white males in Philadelphia. It should be noted that, unfortunately, the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey still only measures gender via the binary male-or-female measure, although it seems that new federal surveys are capturing gender identity beyond the simplified male-female dichotomy.

FIGURE 4

Consistent with our previous analyses, full-time, year-round salaried workers of color and women continue to earn proportionally less than non-Hispanic white males in Philadelphia. Across all racial and ethnic groups, women consistently earned less than their male counterparts. Non-Hispanic white women fare the best with $0.87 for every white male dollar earned, however, at $0.13, they also have the largest gap in earnings between males and females of any racial or ethnic group. Asian females earned $0.65 for every white male dollar earned – $0.06 less than Asian males. Black full-time, year-round salaried workers had the smallest gap in earnings between males and females, with males earning $0.62 to every white male dollar earned and females earning $0.02 less than males. Latinx/Hispanic males earned more than Black females at $0.61 for every white male dollar earned. Latinx/Hispanic females, however, saw the lowest earnings among all the racial, ethnic, and gender groups at $0.54 to every white male dollar – only slightly above half of what a non-Hispanic white male earned in the city in 2020.

The Takeaway

While our previous Leading Indicator detailed that income inequality in Philadelphia has grown in the past decade, it is important to recognize how this inequality disproportionately impacts different residential groups. A more equal distribution would have an even mix of households and neighborhoods across the income spectrum, regardless of the race, ethnicity, or gender of the residents. Similarly, full-time, year-round workers’ earnings would not correlate with race, ethnicity, or gender. As conversations in the city continue to propose methods for addressing income and wealth inequality, new methods cannot be color- or gender-blind, since these factors still significantly influence economic opportunity.

Works Cited

[1] U.S. Census Bureau. 2022. 2016-2020 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Retrieved from: (https://www.census.gov/data.html).