Families in metropolitan areas tend to have higher incomes than families in nonmetropolitan areas. In 1964, the median income of families residing in metropolitan areas was $7,300. This was about $2,100, or 40 percent, higher than the median income of $5,200 for families living in nonmetropolitan areas. The higher incomes of families in metropolitan areas do not necessarily connote proportionately greater economic well-being, because living costs in these areas also tend to be higher than in nonmetropolitan areas.

Familiesliving in the suburban ring of metropolitan areas received greater incomes than those families living in the central cities of the areas. Median income of families residing in the suburbs was $7,800 in 1964 compared with $6,700 for families residing in central cities. Approximately 15 percent of families living in central cities had incomes below $3,000, as compared with 10 percent for families residing in metropolitan areas outside central cities. At the opposite end of the income scale, 24 percent of families within central cities had incomes of $10,000 or more, whereas 31 percent of families in the suburbs had incomes above that level.