The initials CPS stand for Current Population Survey. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) sponsors this survey. The BLS uses the CPS to produce the official monthly unemployment data. In addition to the basic questions, each March field representatives ask respondents supplemental questions on their income and earnings during the previous calendar year.

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You can access "Guidance on Survey Differences in Income and Poverty Estimates" for differences between Census Bureau surveys. For differences between other agencies and census income, you should see "Comparability of Current Population Survey Income Data with Other Data".

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A family consists of two or more people (one of whom is the householder) related by birth, marriage, or adoption residing in the same housing unit. A household consists of all people who occupy a housing unit regardless of relationship. A household may consist of a person living alone or multiple unrelated individuals or families living together. You may access all of the CPS definitions at //www.census.gov/population/www/cps/cpsdef.html

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The Census Bureau released income based on the CPS for calendar year 2001 on September 24, 2002. Median household income for all households is $42,228; for White non-Hispanic households $46,305; for Black households $29,470; and for Hispanic households $33,565. These data are also available for families and people. For more information on this and other income subjects, access our main income page; our section on detailed income tabulations; or our historical income tables.

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The Census Bureau does not have an official definition of "middle class." We do, however, derive several measures related to the distribution of income and income inequality. You may access more information on income inequality (middle class) or general income distributions through our detailed income tabulations page.

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Quintile data and data for the top 5 percent are available for households and families. You may access tables showing these data through our historical income table section on income inequality.

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People in this occupation category had 2001 median earnings of $43,821. You may access data on other occupation categories through our detailed income tabulations page or our historical income tables.

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Based on median earnings of full-time year-round, workers, the female-to-male earnings ratio in 2001 was .76. You may access historical data on this subject through our historical income tables.

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Men 25 years old and over who work full-time year-round and have a Bachelor's Degree have 2001 median annual earnings of $53,108. The comparable figure for women is $39,818. You may access more data on earnings by education through our detailed income tabulations page our detailed income tabulations page or our historical income tables.

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The latest income for people 65 years old and over based on the CPS is for calendar year 2001. The median income for this group is $14,152. We also show data for males and females separately. You may access more information on income by age through our detailed income tabulations page or our historical income tables.

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You may access the microdata files for the CPS through the Federal Electronic Research and Review Extraction Tool (Ferret).

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If you are having trouble accessing our data, please contact the Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division (SEHSD) at (301) 763-3242 for instructions.

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If you are having trouble downloading our data, please contact the Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division (SEHSD) at (301) 763-3242 for instructions.

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