US Q3 2026 real median weekly pay falls 2.1% to $370, first yearly drop since 2022

Typical weekly pay fell in both cash and inflation-adjusted terms

Median usual weekly earnings are the midpoint of what full-time wage and salary workers earn each week. The measure shows whether typical pay keeps up with prices. Seasonally adjusted (corrected for regular seasonal swings), the median fell to $1,239 in Q3 2026 from $1,258 in the second quarter (Q2). That is a 1.5% drop, which is rare for this measure in cash terms. It is still up 2.0% on Q3 2025 ($1,215).

In constant 1982-84 dollars, which remove the effect of price changes, the median fell to $370 from $378. That is the lowest level since Q2 2024 and the largest quarterly drop since Q4 2020. The figure comes from a household survey. Part of the drop may therefore reflect changes in who is working.

Full-time employment rose on the quarter but is lower than a year ago

• Seasonally adjusted full-time wage and salary jobs: 121.44 million in Q3 2026.
• That is up 308 thousand on the quarter.
• It is down about 340 thousand on the year, from 121.78 million in Q3 2025.

Lower earners gained more than higher earners

These figures are not seasonally adjusted. Weekly pay for the bottom tenth of earners was $634, up 2.9% on the year. Pay for the top tenth was $2,919, up only 0.6%. Among workers aged 25 to 54, women's median pay was 82.9% of men's, up from 80.9% in Q2.

New tables compare pay across racial groups, and annual figures were restated

New tables, which are not seasonally adjusted, compare median pay by race with that of White workers, starting in Q1 2026. In Q3, Black workers' median pay was 80.3% of White workers' pay. Hispanic workers' pay was 77.8% and Asian workers' pay was 129.5%. Separately, annual inflation-adjusted pay figures are now stated in 2025 dollars. On this basis, median weekly pay for 2024 is $1,190, up from $1,159 before the restatement. Median weekly pay for 2025 is $1,204, and median hourly pay is $20.81.