Trends: Census Bureau
Female-to-Male Earnings Ratio Since 1960
In 2025 the female-to-male earnings ratio for full-time, year-round workers was 0.839: women's median annual earnings of $60,760 against men's $72,380, in 2025 dollars. In 1960 the ratio was 0.607. Census Bureau report P60-289 Table 12 gives every year from 1960 to 2025 for total workers and for full-time, year-round workers.
Real median earnings by sex and the female-to-male ratio, 1960 to 2025
| Year | Total workers, median earnings | Full-time, year-round workers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Male median | Female median | Female-to-male ratio | |
| 2025 | $61,170 | $47,410 | $72,380 | $60,760 | 0.839 |
| 2024 2 | $61,610 | $46,380 | $73,070 | $58,860 | 0.806 |
| 2023 | $59,160 | $44,260 | $70,210 | $58,070 | 0.827 |
| 2022 | $57,640 | $45,140 | $68,100 | $57,190 | 0.840 |
| 2021 | $59,980 | $46,120 | $71,970 | $60,260 | 0.837 |
| 2020 3 | $60,410 | $44,060 | $75,400 | $62,690 | 0.831 |
| 2019 | $60,560 | $44,490 | $71,350 | $58,740 | 0.823 |
| 2018 | $58,900 | $41,150 | $69,680 | $56,830 | 0.816 |
| 2017 4 | $57,940 | $40,990 | $67,090 | $54,790 | 0.817 |
| 2017 | $57,090 | $40,640 | $67,040 | $53,970 | 0.805 |
| 2016 | $55,230 | $40,400 | $67,560 | $54,360 | 0.805 |
| 2015 | $54,920 | $39,920 | $67,590 | $53,770 | 0.796 |
| 2014 | $53,590 | $37,450 | $66,450 | $52,250 | 0.786 |
| 2013 5 | $53,810 | $36,640 | $66,900 | $51,890 | 0.776 |
| 2013 6 | $53,370 | $37,100 | $66,920 | $52,380 | 0.783 |
| 2012 | $51,330 | $36,390 | $66,870 | $51,160 | 0.765 |
| 2011 | $51,530 | $36,640 | $66,520 | $51,220 | 0.770 |
| 2010 7 | $52,340 | $37,710 | $68,220 | $52,480 | 0.769 |
| 2009 8 | $52,400 | $37,540 | $67,970 | $52,320 | 0.770 |
| 2008 | $52,530 | $36,850 | $66,610 | $51,350 | 0.771 |
| 2007 | $54,560 | $38,540 | $67,180 | $52,270 | 0.778 |
| 2006 | $54,800 | $37,370 | $64,550 | $49,660 | 0.769 |
| 2005 | $53,990 | $36,260 | $65,050 | $50,070 | 0.770 |
| 2004 9 | $52,530 | $35,990 | $65,980 | $50,520 | 0.766 |
| 2003 | $53,130 | $36,480 | $67,420 | $50,930 | 0.755 |
| 2002 | $53,550 | $36,260 | $66,720 | $51,110 | 0.766 |
| 2001 | $53,740 | $35,720 | $65,580 | $50,050 | 0.763 |
| 2000 10 | $54,220 | $35,510 | $65,260 | $48,110 | 0.737 |
| 1999 11 | $54,510 | $33,420 | $65,950 | $47,690 | 0.723 |
| 1998 | $53,190 | $32,770 | $65,380 | $47,840 | 0.732 |
| 1997 | $50,330 | $31,340 | $63,140 | $46,830 | 0.742 |
| 1996 | $49,390 | $30,700 | $61,570 | $45,410 | 0.738 |
| 1995 12 | $49,180 | $30,120 | $61,920 | $44,230 | 0.714 |
| 1994 13 | $47,610 | $28,820 | $62,090 | $44,690 | 0.720 |
| 1993 14 | $46,150 | $28,580 | $62,530 | $44,720 | 0.715 |
| 1992 15 | $46,160 | $28,510 | $63,630 | $45,040 | 0.708 |
| 1991 | $47,230 | $27,840 | $63,570 | $44,410 | 0.699 |
| 1990 | $48,200 | $27,430 | $61,980 | $44,390 | 0.716 |
| 1989 | $50,200 | $27,560 | $64,180 | $44,070 | 0.687 |
| 1988 | $50,530 | $27,200 | $65,340 | $43,160 | 0.660 |
| 1987 16 | $50,380 | $26,990 | $65,950 | $42,990 | 0.652 |
| 1986 | $49,360 | $26,320 | $66,370 | $42,660 | 0.643 |
| 1985 17 | $47,490 | $24,920 | $64,630 | $41,730 | 0.646 |
| 1984 18 | $47,030 | $23,960 | $64,130 | $40,820 | 0.637 |
| 1983 | $46,250 | $23,680 | $62,970 | $40,040 | 0.636 |
| 1982 | $46,090 | $23,050 | $63,200 | $39,020 | 0.617 |
| 1981 | $47,890 | $22,960 | $64,420 | $38,160 | 0.592 |
| 1980 | $48,810 | $23,070 | $64,830 | $39,000 | 0.602 |
| 1979 19 | $50,080 | $23,120 | $65,810 | $39,260 | 0.597 |
| 1978 | $51,380 | $22,230 | $66,610 | $39,590 | 0.594 |
| 1977 | $49,930 | $21,150 | $66,170 | $38,990 | 0.589 |
| 1976 20 | $49,620 | $20,690 | $64,810 | $39,010 | 0.602 |
| 1975 21 | $49,250 | $20,130 | $64,950 | $38,200 | 0.588 |
| 1974 21, 22 | $50,310 | $19,650 | $65,430 | $38,440 | 0.588 |
| 1973 | $52,590 | $19,800 | $67,760 | $38,380 | 0.566 |
| 1972 23 | $51,370 | $20,450 | $65,580 | $37,940 | 0.579 |
| 1971 24 | $49,080 | $19,840 | $62,440 | $37,150 | 0.595 |
| 1970 | $49,540 | $18,910 | $62,100 | $36,870 | 0.594 |
| 1969 | $50,120 | $18,630 | $59,760 | $36,150 | 0.605 |
| 1968 | $48,780 | $19,020 | $58,030 | $33,750 | 0.582 |
| 1967 25 | $47,390 | $18,510 | $56,540 | $32,670 | 0.578 |
| 1966 26 | $47,950 | $19,200 | $55,690 | $32,050 | 0.576 |
| 1965 27 | $45,130 | $19,360 | $53,340 | $31,970 | 0.599 |
| 1964 | $44,850 | $18,210 | $52,780 | $31,220 | 0.591 |
| 1963 | $47,530 | $17,470 | $51,380 | $30,280 | 0.589 |
| 1962 28 | $42,840 | $17,100 | $50,160 | $29,740 | 0.593 |
| 1961 29 | $41,510 | $16,470 | $49,250 | $29,180 | 0.592 |
| 1960 | $40,010 | $16,260 | $47,720 | $28,960 | 0.607 |
Reading this table
Each row is a calendar year of earnings as reported in the following spring's Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement. Median earnings are the midpoint of annual wages, salary and self-employment income for men and for women, in 2025 dollars (earlier years are inflated with the C-CPI-U from 2000 and the R-CPI-U-RS before that, as the Census note states), so the dollar columns are comparable across years. Total workers includes part-time and part-year workers; full-time, year-round workers worked 35 or more hours a week for 50 or more weeks, and the ratio is the women's median divided by the men's median within that group.
The ratio summarizes two medians; it is not a comparison of pay for the same work, because the two groups differ in occupation, industry, hours above 35, experience and other characteristics the table does not hold constant, and Census does not describe it as such. A year with a footnote marker had a change in survey method, questionnaire or population controls, and the two rows Census prints for such years show the figure both ways; margins of error for every estimate are in the published workbook. The Learn explainer covers what the ratio measures; the most recent year's detail by age is on the age and sex page.
Source, release and next release
- Table: Table 12. Number and Real Median Earnings of Total Workers and Full-Time, Year-Round Workers With Earnings by Sex and Female-to-Male Earnings Ratio: 1960 to 2025, fetched (SHA-256 98e3a2b58fea…).
- Publication: Income in the United States: 2025 (P60-289), released September 15, 2026.
- Census note: (Earnings in 2025 dollars, adjusted using the Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (C-CPI-U) (2000-2025) and Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers Retroactive Series (R-CPI-U-RS) (pre-2000). More information on inflation adjustment is available in Appendix A of "Income in the United States: 2025" at <https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/2026/demo/p60-289.pdf>. People 15 years and older as of March of the following year beginning in 1980, and people 14 years old and older as of March of the following year for previous years. Before 1989, earnings are for civilian workers only. Information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error, and definitions is available at <https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cps/techdocs/cpsmar26.pdf>)
- Years marked with a superscript number in the original carry a footnote on a change in survey method or population controls; the full list is in the published table.
- Figures are shown as published; this site does not seasonally adjust, deflate, interpolate or extend any series.