This graph shows the average annual growth in household after-tax incomes for each quintile from 1999-00 to 2019-20. 

[infogram id=”_/4AcGK7i1Rs99VN0hqR1a” prefix=”E95″ format=”interactive” title=”2023_Trends in average weekly after tax income from 1999-00 to 2019-20 (in 2019 dollars)”]

During the period up to 2007, growth in high incomes surpassed that of middle and lower-income households. The average after-tax incomes of the highest 20% rose by 40% from $2,658 per week in 1999 to $3,728 in 2007, compared with an increase of 32% from $1,348 to $1,784 for the middle 20% and an increase of 31% from $535 to $700 for the lowest 20%. The highest 5% of households saw their incomes grow even more strongly during the boom, from $3,620 a week to $5,773, a steep 59% increase. After the  Global Financial Crisis (GFC) in 2008, growth in household incomes flatlined, along with income inequality. The average after-tax incomes of the highest 20% rose by 4% from $3,728 in 2007 to $3,895 in 2019-20, compared with an increase of 7% from $1,784 to $1,904 for the middle 20% and a rise of 12% from $700 to $783 for the lowest 20%. Average incomes for the highest 5% declined slightly over this period, by 0.4% from $5,773 to $5,749, though this was largely due to a decline in the final year (2019-20), when – unlike low and middle-income groups – they were not shielded from the impact of the COVID recession