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The termsaverage Joe,ordinary Joe,regular Joe,Joe Sixpack,Joe Lunchbucket,Joe Snuffy,Joe Blow,Joe Schmoe (for males), andordinary Jane,average Jane, andplain Jane (for females), are used primarily inNorth America andAustralia and New Zealand to refer to a completely average person, typically anaverage American. It can be used both to give the image of a hypothetical "completely average person" or to describe an existing person.Parallel terms in other languages for local equivalents exist worldwide.
Historically, there have been several attempts at answering who exactly is the average American. For example, theSaturday Evening Post andThe Washington Post have attempted to answer the question. Both articles agreed that the average American is a white Christian female, who is part of a couple, and is politically independent.[1][2] Admittedly, there are problems with this answer. In 2001, for example, no single household arrangement constituted more than 30% of total households. Married couples with no children were the most common constituting 28.7% of households. It would nonetheless be inaccurate to state that the average American lives in a childless couple arrangement as 71.3% do not.[3]
Today, statistics by theUnited States Department of Commerce provide information regarding the societal attributes of those who may be referred to as being "average". While some individual attributes are easily identified as being average, such as the median income, other characteristics, such as family arrangements, may not be identified as being average. In terms ofsocial class, the average American may be described as either beingmiddle class,[4] orworking class.[5] As social classes lack distinct boundaries the average American may have a status in the area where the lower middle and upper working class overlap.[6]
"Average Joes" are common fodder for characters intelevision ormovies,comics,novels, orradio dramas. On television, examples of "average Joes" includeDoug Heffernan (King of Queens),Alan Harper (Two and a Half Men) andHomer Simpson (The Simpsons). In the filmDodgeball: A True Underdog Story, theprotagonist, Peter, owns a gym for those who do not want an intensive workout, and the patrons of the gym are all somewhat overweight. The gym is named Average Joe's Gymnasium.[7] In real life, as chronicled in his bestsellerThe Average American: The Extraordinary Search for the Nation's Most Ordinary Citizen, Kevin O'Keefe successfully completed a nationwide search for the person who was the most statistically average in theUnited States during a multi-year span starting in 2000.Newsweek proclaimed of the book, "The journey toward run-of-the-mill has never been so remarkable."
As the United States is a highly diverse nation, it should not be surprising that there is no single prevalent household arrangement. While the "nuclear family" consisting of a married couple with their own children is often seen as the average American family, such households constitute less than a quarter of all households.[3][6] Married couples without children are currently the plurality constituting 28.7% of households, compared to 24.1% for nuclear families.
Another 25.5% of households consisted of single persons residing alone. Recent trends have shown the numbers of nuclear families as well as childless married couples decrease. In 1970, 40.3% of US households consisted of nuclear families with childless couples making up 30.3% of households and 10.6% of households being arranged in "Other family types."[3]
By 2000 the percentage of nuclear families had decreased by 40%, while the number of other family types had increased by 51%. The percentage of single households has also steadily increased. In 1970, only 17% of households consisted of singles. In 2000 that figure had increased by 50% with singles constituting 25.5% of households. The most drastic increase was among the percentage of households made up of single males, which nearly doubled from 5.6% in 1970 to 10.7% in 2000.[3]
Today, one can no longer refer to the nuclear family as the average American household, neither can one identify the current plurality of married couples without children as "the average." Recent statistics indeed indicate that there is no average American family arrangement, but that American society is home to a wide and diverse variety of family arrangements. The one thing the data does indicate is that the average Joe most likely does not reside in a nuclear 4-person family.[3][6]
The nuclear family ... is the idealized version of what most people think of when they think of "family ..." The old definition of what a family is ... the nuclear family- no longer seems adequate to cover the wide diversity of household arrangements we see today, according to many social scientists (Edwards 1991; Stacey 1996). Thus has arisen the termpostmodern family, which is meant to describe the great variability in family forms, including single-parent families and child-free couples.
— Brian K. Williams, Stacey C. Sawyer, Carl M. Wahlstrom,Marriages, Families & Intimate Relationships, 2005.[3]
A statement that can be made, however, is that most Americans will marry at least once in their lifetime with the first marriage most commonly ending in divorce. Today a little over half (52.3%) of US household include a married couple, showing a significant decrease since 1970 when 70.6% of households included a married couple.[3] Current trends indicate that people in the US are marrying later and less often with higher divorce rates.
Despite the declining prevalence of marriage, more than three-quarters of Americans will marry at least once in their lifetime. The average age for marriage for a male was 26.8 and 25.1 for a female. Americans are also likely to remarry after their first divorce. In 1990, 40% of all marriages were remarriages. All together one can conclude that while there is no prevalent average household arrangement, most Americans (the average Joe) will get married and divorced once with a considerable number of Americans remarrying at least once.[6]
| Year | Families (69.7%) | Non-families (31.2%) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Married couples (52.5%) | Single parents | Other blood relatives | Singles (25.5%) | Other non-family | |||
| Nuclear family | Without children | Male | Female | ||||
| 2000 | 24.1% | 28.7% | 9.9% | 7% | 10.7% | 14.8% | 5.7% |
| 1970 | 40.3% | 30.3% | 5.2% | 5.5% | 5.6% | 11.5% | 1.7% |
Income in the United States is most commonly measured either byindividual orhousehold. By only including those above age 25, the vast majority of students and all working adolescents are excluded. The average American, as discussed in the educational attainment section, is a high school graduate who attended but did not graduate from college. From the below table in 2017, the median personal income of such Americans was $37,968, and among those who worked full-time their median personal income was $43,377.
| Measure | Some high school | High school graduate | Some college | Associate's degree | Bachelor's degree or higher | Bachelor's degree | Master's degree | Professional degree | Doctorate degree |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons, w/ earnings | $24,576 | $33,669 | $37,968 | $37,968 | $61,440 | $56,592 | $70,608 | $91,538 | $79,231 |
| Male, w/ earnings | $22,214 | $32,307 | $39,823 | $43,785 | $70,437 | $62,304 | $78,222 | $111,881 | $91,604 |
| Female, w/ earnings | $20,784 | $28,896 | $33,360 | $33,360 | $54,480 | $49,248 | $61,200 | $65,012 | $68,887 |
| Persons, employed full-time | $30,598 | $38,102 | $43,377 | $47,401 | $71,221 | $64,074 | $77,285 | $117,679 | $101,307 |
| Ethnic group | All households | Lowest fifth | Second fifth | Middle fifth | Fourth fifth | Highest fifth | Top 5% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White Alone | Numbers in 000s | 102,057 | 18,624 | 20,056 | 20,717 | 21,293 | 21,367 | 5,392 |
| Percentage | 77.79% | 70.98% | 76.43% | 78.95% | 81.15% | 81.43% | 82.17% | |
| Black Alone | Numbers in 000s | 17,698 | 5,490 | 4,291 | 3,493 | 2,592 | 1,832 | 350 |
| Percentage | 13.49% | 20.92% | 16.35% | 13.31% | 9.88% | 6.98% | 5.33% | |
| Asian Alone | Numbers in 000s | 7,276 | 1,116 | 0,951 | 1,235 | 1,547 | 2,426 | 700 |
| Percentage | 5.55% | 4.25% | 3.62% | 4.71% | 5.90% | 9.25% | 10.67% | |
| Hispanic (any race) | Numbers in 000s | 19,230 | 4,333 | 4,816 | 4,091 | 3,572 | 2,418 | 492 |
| Percentage | 14.66% | 16.51% | 18.35% | 15.59% | 13.61% | 9.21% | 7.50% | |
Source: US Census Bureau, 2021[9]
| Type of household | Race and Hispanic origin | Region | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All households | Family households | Nonfamily households | Asian | Non-Hispanic White | Hispanic (of any race) | Black | Northeast | Midwest | South | West |
| $70,784 | $91,162 | $41,797 | $101,418 | $77,999 | $57,981 | $48,297 | $77,422 | $71,129 | $63,368 | $79,430 |
| Age of Householder | Nativity of Householder | Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Status | Educational Attainment of Householder* | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 65 years | 65 years and older | Native-born | Foreign-born | Inside MSA | Outside MSA | No high school diploma | High school, no college | Some college | Bachelor's degree or higher |
| $80,734 | $47,620 | $71,522 | $66,043 | $73,823 | $53,750 | $30,378 | $50,401 | $64,378 | $115,456 |
| *Householders aged 25 and older. In 2021, the median household income for this group was $72,046. | |||||||||
| Total workers | Full-Time, year-round workers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Both sexes | Male | Female | Both sexes | Male | Female |
| $45,470 | $50,983 | $39,201 | $56,473 | $61,180 | $51,226 |
| Measure | Overall | Less than 9th grade | Some High School | High school graduate | Some college | Associate's degree | Bachelor's degree or higher | Bachelor's degree | Master's degree | Professional degree | Doctorate degree |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $46,985 | $25,162 | $26,092 | $34,540 | $39,362 | $42,391 | $66,423 | $60,705 | $71,851 | $102,741 | $101,526 |
| Male, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $52,298 | $30,089 | $31,097 | $40,852 | $47,706 | $52,450 | $80,192 | $71,666 | $91,141 | $126,584 | $121,956 |
| Female, age 25+ w/ earnings* | $40,392 | $18,588 | $19,504 | $27,320 | $31,837 | $36,298 | $57,355 | $51,154 | $62,522 | $92,780 | $85,551 |
| Persons, age 25+, employed full-time | $59,371 | $33,945 | $34,897 | $42,417 | $50,640 | $52,285 | $77,105 | $71,283 | $82,183 | $130,466 | $119,552 |
| Household | $69,228 | $29,609 | $29,520 | $47,405 | $60,392 | $68,769 | $106,936 | $100,128 | $114,900 | $151,560 | $142,493 |
| *Total work experience | |||||||||||
| 10th percentile | 20th percentile | 30th percentile | 40th percentile | 50th percentile | 60th percentile | 70th percentile | 80th percentile | 90th percentile | 95th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ≤ $15,700 | ≤ $28,000 | ≤ $40,500 | ≤ $55,000 | $70,800 | ≤ $89,700 | ≤ $113,200 | ≤ $149,100 | ≤ $212,100 | ≤ $286,300 |
| Source: US Census Bureau, 2021; income statistics for the year 2021 | |||||||||
The US adult population seems almost equally divided between those who have and those who don't have a college degree, including anAssociate degree. While only a minority of Americans, 35%, have graduated from college with a Bachelor's degree or more, a majority, 61%, of Americans had "some college" education. Also, 45% had anassociate degree or more, with only roughly 13.7% having agraduate degree. On the other end of the strata, 10% of adults did not graduate from high school.[14]
It is fair to assume that the average Joe/Jane is not a college graduate, but is a high school graduate. However, it is difficult to determine how muchcollege education the average American has, as the population is split between those who graduated, attended but did not graduate, and did not attend college. Over the past half century the educational attainment of the US population has significantly increased.[15] In 2019, the median personal income for American adults age 25+ was $46,985 overall, specifically $52,297 for males and $40,294 for females.
| Education | Age 25 and over | Age 25-30 |
|---|---|---|
| High school diploma orGED | 89.80% | 92.95% |
| Some college | 61.28% | 66.34% |
| Associate degree | 45.16% | 46.72% |
| Bachelor's degree | 34.98% | 36.98% |
| Master's degree | 13.04% | 9.01% |
| Professional degree | 3.47% | 2.02% |
| Doctorate | 2.03% | 1.12% |
| Criteria | Overall | Less than 9th grade | Some high school | High school graduate or equivalent | Some college | Associate degree | Bachelor's degree | Bachelor's degree or more | Master's degree | Professional degree | Doctoral degree | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median annual individual income[17] | Male, age 25+ | $52,297 | $29,405 | $32,112 | $41,580 | $49,676 | $53,082 | $70,968 | $78,156 | $89,915 | $135,970 | $112,305 |
| Female, age 25+ | $40,294 | $20,252 | $21,851 | $28,166 | $32,679 | $35,970 | $50,691 | $56,047 | $61,861 | $88,301 | $87,394 | |
| Age 25+ | $46,985 | $25,162 | $26,092 | $35,540 | $39,362 | $42,391 | $60,705 | $66,432 | $71,851 | $102,741 | $101,526 | |
| Median annual household income[18] | $70,308 | $30,355 | $31,326 | $48,708 | $61,911 | $69,573 | $100,164 | $108,646 | $117,439 | $162,127 | $142,347 | |
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In terms ofsocial class the average American could be referred to as being both a member of themiddle[4] orworking class.[20][21] The discrepancy is largely the result of differingclass models and definitions of what constitutes a member of themiddle class. Currently the vast majority of Americans self-identify asmiddle class, yet some experts in the field such as Michael Zweig ofStony Brook University or Dennis Gilbert ofCornell University have brought forth different theories. The majority of American adults are neitherprofessionals nor managers and lackcollege degrees.[6][15]
Everyone wants to believe they are middle class. For people on the bottom and the top of the wage scale the phrase connotes a certain Regular Joe cachet. But this eagerness to be part of the group has led the definition to be stretched like a bungee cord.
— Dante Chinni,The Christian Science Monitor
Occupational autonomy is a key factor in regards to class positions.[22] Professionals and managers who are exclusively labeled asmiddle class, and often asupper middle class, conceptualize, create and consult in their jobs. Due to their great expertise they enjoy a high degree ofautonomy in the workplace.[21]
The American economy, however, does not require a labor force consisting solely ofprofessionals. Instead it requires a greatly diverse and specialized labor force. Thus the majority of Americans complete assigned tasks with considerably less autonomy and creative freedom thanprofessionals, leading to theory that they may better be described as being members of the working class.[6]
| Dennis Gilbert, 2002 | William Thompson & Joseph Hickey, 2005 | Leonard Beeghley, 2004 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class | Typical characteristics | Class | Typical characteristics | Class | Typical characteristics |
| Capitalist class (1%) | Top-level executives, high-rung politicians, heirs. Ivy League education common. | Upper class (1%) | Top-level executives, celebrities, heirs; income of $500,000+ common. Ivy League education common. | The super-rich (0.9%) | Multi-millionaires whose incomes commonly exceed $3.5 million or more; includes celebrities and powerful executives/politicians. Ivy League education common. |
| Upper middle class[1] (15%) | Highly-educated (often with graduate degrees), most commonly salaried, professionals and middle management with large work autonomy. | Upper middle class[1] (15%) | Highly-educated (often with graduate degrees) professionals & managers with household incomes varying from the high 5-figure range to commonly above $100,000. | The rich (5%) | Households with net worth of $1 million or more; largely in the form of home equity. Generally have college degrees. |
| Middle class (plurality/ majority?; ca. 46%) | College-educated workers with considerably higher-than-average incomes and compensation; a man making $57,000 and a woman making $40,000 may be typical. | ||||
| Lower middle class (30%) | Semi-professionals and craftsmen with a roughly average standard of living. Most have some college education and are white-collar. | Lower middle class (32%) | Semi-professionals and craftsmen with some work autonomy; household incomes commonly range from $35,000 to $75,000. Typically, some college education. | ||
| Working class (30%) | Clerical and most blue-collar workers whose work is highly routinized. Standard of living varies depending on number of income earners, but is commonly just adequate. High school education. | ||||
| Working class (32%) | Clerical, pink- and blue-collar workers with often low job security; common household incomes range from $16,000 to $30,000. High school education. | Working class (ca. 40–45%) | Blue-collar workers and those whose jobs are highly routinized with low economic security; a man making $40,000 and a woman making $26,000 may be typical. High school education. | ||
| Working poor (13%) | Service, low-rung clerical and some blue-collar workers. High economic insecurity and risk of poverty. Some high school education. | ||||
| Lower class (ca. 14–20%) | Those who occupy poorly-paid positions or rely on government transfers. Some high school education. | ||||
| Underclass (12%) | Those with limited or no participation in the labor force. Reliant on government transfers. Some high school education. | The poor (ca. 12%) | Those living below the poverty line with limited to no participation in the labor force; a household income of $18,000 may be typical. Some high school education. | ||
| |||||
| Race | Production, transportation, and material moving | Natural resources, construction, and maintenance | Sales and office | Service | Management, professional, and related |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 11.3 | 10.1 | 21.3 | 15.9 | 41.4 |
| Black or African American | 16.2 | 5.7 | 22.3 | 23.8 | 31.9 |
| Asian | 9.1 | 3.1 | 17 | 15.8 | 55 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 15.4 | 16.4 | 20.6 | 24.2 | 23.3 |
The plurality of Americans (41%) today are white-collar salaried employees who work in varied environments, including offices and at home. Roughly 25% of Americans were employed in the traditional blue-collar fields that involve physical labor. And 34% of Americans are employed in the service industry, including about one-third in the healthcare industry (11% of the total).[23][24]
Educational attainment varied greatly depending on occupational field with 68% of those in theprofessional and professional support fields having a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to only 31.6% of those employed in sales and 11.6% of those in the service sector. The average American does not have a bachelor's degree, and is most likely employed in thetertiary sector of the economy, encompassing both non-professionalwhite-collar andpink-collar work. Altogether the American economy and labor force have changed greatly since the middle of the 20th century, with most workers today no longer being employed inblue-collar occupations.[15]
The majority of American households are "homeowners" but likely owe on a mortgage, as the term also includes households that owe on amortgage. According to ATTOM Data Research, only "34 percent of all American homeowners have 100 percent equity in their properties — they've either paid off their entire mortgage debt or they never had a mortgage".[26]
Homeownership is the primary asset most Americans use to generate wealth. For majority of U.S. homeowners, theirhome equity represents 50-70% of their net wealth.[27] In first quarter 2023, the average American with an active mortgage had a home equity close to US$275,000.[28]
According to US Department of Commerce data in 2005, 67% of housing units in the United States wereowner occupied, had three or fewer bedrooms with one or less occupant per room (including kitchen, dining room, living room, etc.) and were mortgaged.[29] The overwhelming majority, 85%, of all housing units had three or fewer bedrooms. The plurality of housing units, 40%, had three bedrooms. The majority, 67%, of housing units were mortgaged with 52% of households spending 25% or less of theirannual income on mortgage payments.
Themedian value of a housing unit in the US was $167,500 in 2005 with the median mortgage payment being $1,295. The average size of a household was 2.5 persons with almost all housing units, 97%, having 1 or fewer occupants per room. However, the term "room" does not exclusively refer to bedrooms, but includes the kitchen, dining room, family room, bathrooms and any other rooms a house might have. While 85% of American homes had 3 or fewer bedrooms, the median number of total rooms per housing units was 5.3 in 2005.[29] These statistics suggest that the average Americans reside in theirown home, and pay roughly $1,000 per month in mortgage payments for a three or fewer bedroom house with no more than one occupant per room.[29]
US Census Bureau data from 2002 identified housing characteristics for owner-occupied units inhabited by households with average incomes, ranging from $40,000 to $60,000. The median square footage for homes occupied by middle-income households was 1,700 with 52% of such homes having two or more bathrooms. The median value of these homes was $112,000 with the median year of construction being 1970. Middle-income households tended to spend roughly 18% of their monthly income on housing. Thus it is likely that many average Americans reside in 1,700-square-foot (160 m2) homes, priced slightly above $100,000 with two or more bathrooms that were built in the late 1960s and early 1970s.[30] However, the taken income is slightly above average.
