The middle class, making up over half of American households, has steadily contracted in the past five decades.

A recent government study has shown that the middle class shrank by 10% over a 52- year period ending in 2023. That drop has been reallocated to the lower and upper classes. Americans living in lower-class households rose from 27% to 30%, while those living in upper- class homes rose from 11% to 19%.

The middle class has fallen on two key accounts. The growth in income for the middle class has not kept up with the growth for those in the upper-income bracket. Second, the share of total US household income held by the middle class has taken a plunge. However, despite the decrease, the middle class still accounts for the largest share of the U.S. population.

There is also the fact that the US population is aging. The average American lifespan has been continually growing in recent generations, and more young and middle-aged adults are choosing to put off becoming parents or simply choosing not to start a family at all. A 2022 study done by the Pew Research Center showed that Americans 65 and older were more likely to live in lower-income households, at or below the poverty line, taking numbers away from the middle class. Much of senior economic insecurity is due to living on a fixed income and higher healthcare costs. Social Security can help to combat these problems, as it lifts an average of 16.5 million seniors above the Federal Poverty Line each year; however, it is still not enough to cope with a major increase in America’s elderly population.

A majority of US households are listed as middle class, 51% according to U.S. World News Report. To be considered middle class, an individual needs to be able to do the following: own a home, have a secure job, have the ability to save money, have the time and money to take vacations, be able to pay your bills on time, and be able to retire comfortably. But as of 2025, many of these working-class goals seem unrealistic. The cost of living is on the rise, and according to the CPI for the past fiscal year consumer costs have increased by over 3% (higher than the Federal Reserve's target of 2%). Those basic necessity costs are projected to continue increasing in 2025 by 2.5% according to the Social Security Administration, which will contribute to the growing disparity between the upper and lower-class.