The highest-earning 1% of Americans generally contribute significantly more in taxes than most other taxpayers.
The top 1% of earners contribute a significantly larger share of taxes compared to most Americans, accounting for 45% of all personal income taxes collected nationwide. However, their tax contributions vary by state, meaning some states rely more heavily on this group for revenue than others.
With this in mind, the researchers analyzed the most recent IRS tax return data to determine how much the top 1% of earners in each state pay in taxes—both in absolute terms and relative to all other taxpayers.
In Wyoming, the top 1% of earners are responsible for more than 60% of the state’s total income tax revenue. They paid $3.16 billion out of the $5.12 billion collected from all residents — the highest proportion contributed by top earners in any state. In contrast, Alaska had the lowest share, with its top 1% contributing just 29.8% of total income tax revenue.
Connecticut’s top 1% of earners face the highest effective tax rate in the country, paying 27.69% of their income in taxes. In comparison, the average taxpayer in the state pays a lower rate of 17.7%. On the other end of the spectrum, Arkansas’s top 1% pays the lowest effective tax rate among high earners, at just 21.41%.
In four U.S. states, the top 1% of earners take home more than a third of all adjusted gross income (AGI). Leading the list is Wyoming, where the top 1% accounts for a staggering 40.6% of total AGI—amounting to $13.25 billion. Nevada (34.3%), Florida (34.0%), and New York (33.5%) also see significant income concentration among their highest earners, highlighting the sharp economic divide between the top 1% and the remaining 99% in those states.
Nationwide, the top 1% of earners have an effective income tax rate of 25.95%. Over the course of one year, they paid $993.7 billion in income taxes—accounting for 45% of all individual income tax collected. During that same period, their total adjusted gross income was $3.8 trillion.
