Visualizing Median Income For All 3,000+ U.S. Counties

var divElement = document.getElementById(‘viz1503431708708’); var vizElement = divElement.getElementsByTagName(‘object’)[0]; if ( divElement.offsetWidth > 800 ) { vizElement.style.width=’954px’;vizElement.style.height=’869px’;} else if ( divElement.offsetWidth > 500 ) { vizElement.style.width=’954px’;vizElement.style.height=’869px’;} else { vizElement.style.width=’100%’;vizElement.style.height=’1136px’;} var scriptElement = document.createElement(‘script’); scriptElement.src = ‘https://public.tableau.com/javascripts/api/viz_v1.js’; vizElement.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, vizElement); When thinking about the United States and its economy, we often think in terms of maps.

That’s why we have previously visualized the country’s $18 trillion economy by comparing specific regions to similarly sized countries. It’s also why we have shown the extreme variance in population distribution across counties, or highlighted the average income of the “Top 1%” throughout the country.

But there is perhaps nothing more telling or interesting to explore than the granddaddy of all economic maps: an interactive visualization of median household income. That’s why today’s fantastic interactive map from Overflow Data is such a treat. It covers all 3,007 U.S. counties using color coding to show the richest and poorest counties based on median income, and it also allows users to drill down to the stats on counties at the state level.

COASTS, MOUNTAINS, AND OIL

While the areas around coastal cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York City, Boston, or Washington, D.C. are often thought of as the wealthier parts of the country, this map helps reveal two other “belts” in the country with median incomes well above the national average of $53,889.