NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - There's a reason it's called the promised land.
California can count four of the top ten richest cities in America, according to data released Tuesday by the Census Bureau. In addition, seven of the top ten are located west of the Mississippi, while 9 of the 10 poorest cities in the country are located either on the Mississippi or east of it.
So does that mean the West is getting richer while the East slides into decay? Not quite.
The East boasts nine of the 10 richest counties.
It would be tempting to say that affluence in western cities tends to stay closer to downtown while the eastern elite flee to the suburbs, but demographers at the Census Bureau caution against such conclusions.
The sample of this year's study, which only looked at cities and counties with a population of 250,000 or more, isn't wide enough to draw larger trends. For that, we'll have to wait for next year's study, which will survey all cities and counties with a population of 65,000 or more.
In the meantime, here's a look at how the largest cities and counties stacked up, according to the Bureau's 2004 American Community Survey:
Richest American cities with a population of 250,000 or greater |
Rank |
City |
Median household income, 2004 |
1 |
San Jose, CA |
$71,765 |
2 |
Anchorage, AK |
$61,565 |
3 |
San Francisco, CA |
$60,031 |
4 |
Virginia Beach, VA |
$55,781 |
5 |
San Diego, CA |
$51,382 |
6 |
Anaheim, CA |
$49,622 |
7 |
Raleigh, NC |
$47,878 |
8 |
Seattle, WA |
$46,650 |
9 |
Washington, DC |
$46,574 |
10 |
Honolulu, HI |
$46,500 |
11 |
Oakland, CA |
$46,190 |
12 |
Charlotte, NC |
$46,082 |
13 |
Boston, MA |
$45,892 |
14 |
Arlington, TX |
$45,712 |
15 |
Austin, TX |
$45,508 |
16 |
Colorado Springs, CO |
$45,388 |
17 |
Riverside, CA |
$44,866 |
18 |
Las Vegas, NV |
$44,737 |
19 |
Aurora, CO |
$44,480 |
20 |
Minneapolis, MN |
$44,116 |
|
Poorest American cities with a population of 250,000 or greater |
Rank |
City |
Median household income, 2004 |
1 |
Miami, FL |
$24,031 |
2 |
Newark, NJ |
$26,309 |
3 |
Cleveland, OH |
$27,871 |
4 |
Detroit, MI |
$27,871 |
5 |
Buffalo, NY |
$28,544 |
6 |
St. Louis, MO |
$30,389 |
7 |
Philadelphia, PA |
$30,631 |
8 |
Milwaukee, WI |
$31,231 |
9 |
New Orleans, LA |
$31,369 |
10 |
El Paso, TX |
$31,764 |
11 |
Tucson, AZ |
$31,901 |
12 |
Pittsburgh, PA |
$31,910 |
13 |
Cincinnati, OH |
$31,960 |
14 |
Memphis, TN |
$32,399 |
15 |
Baltimore, MD |
$34,055 |
16 |
Toledo, OH |
$35,239 |
17 |
Tulsa, OK |
$36,255 |
18 |
Oklahoma City, OK |
$36,347 |
19 |
San Antonio, TX |
$36,598 |
20 |
Stockton, CA |
$37,322 |
|
Richest counties with a population of 250,000 or more |
Rank |
City |
Median household income, 2004 |
1 |
Fairfax County, VA |
$83,975 |
2 |
Somerset County, NJ |
$84,892 |
3 |
Morris County, NJ |
$83,583 |
4 |
Montgomery County, MD |
$82,971 |
5 |
Howard County, MD |
$82,065 |
6 |
Nassau County, NY |
$78,762 |
7 |
Prince William County, VA |
$77,678 |
8 |
Monmouth County, NJ |
$77,223 |
9 |
Rockland County, NY |
$75,306 |
10 |
Santa Clara County, CA |
$74,509 |
11 |
Fairfield County, CT |
$73,110 |
12 |
Chester County, PA |
$72,288 |
13 |
Suffolk County, NY |
$71,956 |
14 |
McHenry County, IL |
$71,153 |
15 |
Bergen County, NJ |
$70,957 |
16 |
Norfolk County, MA |
$70,903 |
17 |
Lake County, IL |
$70,347 |
18 |
Middlesex County, NJ |
$70,344 |
19 |
DuPage County, IL |
$70,174 |
20 |
Westchester County, NY |
$70,095 |
|
Poorest counties with a population of 250,000 or more |
Rank |
City |
Median household income, 2004 |
1 |
Hidalgo County, TX |
$24,778.00 |
2 |
Cameron County, TX |
$26,290.00 |
3 |
Bronx County, NY |
$28,705.00 |
4 |
El Paso County, TX |
$28,925.00 |
5 |
St. Louis city, MO |
$30,389.00 |
6 |
Philadelphia County, PA |
$30,631.00 |
7 |
Caddo Parish, LA |
$31,317.00 |
8 |
Orleans Parish, LA |
$31,369.00 |
9 |
Baltimore city, MD |
$34,055.00 |
10 |
Mahoning County, OH |
$34,132.00 |
11 |
Polk County, FL |
$34,206.00 |
12 |
Luzerne County, PA |
$34,341.00 |
13 |
Oklahoma County, OK |
$35,182.00 |
14 |
Mobile County, AL |
$35,512.00 |
15 |
Lake County, FL |
$35,856.00 |
16 |
E. Baton Rouge Parish, LA |
$35,954.00 |
17 |
Pasco County, FL |
$35,997.00 |
18 |
Kings County, NY |
$36,030.00 |
19 |
Nueces County, TX |
$36,050.00 |
20 |
Marion County, OR |
$36,591.00 |
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