[justlurking]

Maybe I'm missing something, but how can 26% of the population be earning less than the median income?

The median is the sample literally "in the middle". 50% of the other samples will be less, and 50% of the samples will be more.

Perhaps they meant "mean", or more specifically: the "arithmetic mean". Most people call this the "average".

An example: given the numbers 1,2,10,11,12,

The median is 11.
The mean is 7.2.

[buwaya]

26% are at less than HALF the median income. That was the standard used. Not the median income.
I don’t agree that this is a very useful metric, but thats what they are using.

[justlurking]

I see the problem: their threshold is 50% of the median income, not the median income. Reading comprehension failure on my part.

Putting it into real numbers: the median household income in the US was $51,939 in 2013. So, 50% of that would be $25,970.

The US HHS doesn't have a single number: it varies by family size. In 2015, the closest to the "poverty level" above is $24,250 for a family of 4, in the continental US (AL and HI are higher).

[Boogieman]

It’s 26% who are earning less than half of the median income.