The Sunshine State is an incredibly diverse state in multiple senses of the word, one of them being the diversity of wealth depending on which city you’re located in Florida. Income inequality in Florida is higher than the national average, with incomes varying widely from locality to locality. In recent studies, we analyzed and identified the 50 richest cities in California as well as the richest cities in Michigan. Now, we’re going to take a look at the richest cities in Florida.
Read on to find out what the richest city in Florida is, as well as the top 50 wealthiest cities in the state.
What Is the Richest City in Florida?
Using data sourced from the Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (latest data available), including median household income, mean household income, median home value, and median property taxes paid, we analyzed and assembled a list of the top 50 richest cities in Florida. However, it’s important first to take note of key characteristics concerning Census data: The Census Bureau measures median household incomes up to $250,000, with households earning more being denoted as “$250,000+”. The situation is similar with median home value, which goes up to $2 million, with anything above that denoted as “$2,000,000+”. Lastly, the same measurement parameters apply to median property taxes paid, which go up to $10,000 and any amount above that is denoted as “$10,000+”.
Hence, mean household income was especially useful in our analysis. Unlike median household income, mean (or average) household income has exact values for every city in Florida. All four of these metrics were scored, added up, and then ranked by the cities’ combined scores.
Below you’ll find a table detailing the top 50 richest cities in Florida and their respective dollar figures for each metric:
Based on this four-factor metric of median household income, average household income, median home value, and median property taxes paid, the richest city in Florida is Fisher Island. This island city consisting of only 224 households is about three miles off the shore of Miami proper and just south of Miami Beach. The way to access Fisher Island is either by boat, helicopter, or ferry — there’s no bridge connecting it to anything.
It certainly makes sense that Fisher Island ranked as the No. 1 richest city in Florida. The city’s median household income is over $250,000. Its median home value is in excess of $2 million, and the median property taxes paid by households is over $10,000 per year. The kicker, though, is the average household income in Fisher Island — a whopping $550,855. Indeed, Fisher Island has the highest per capita income of any place in the U.S.
No. 2 Gulf Stream is somewhat different than No. 1 Fisher Island. With 413 total households, the town of Gulf Stream is a little under double the size of Fisher Island. Located in Palm Beach County, Gulf Stream is just north of Delray Beach and about 18 miles south of West Palm Beach. In Gulf Stream, like Fisher Island, the median household income is over $250,000, the median home value surpasses $2 million and median property taxes exceed $10,000 per year. The average household income in Gulf Stream is $496,308, which is the second-highest mean household income in Florida. Not surprisingly, considering the high incomes, the largest occupation in Gulf Stream is Management Occupations, with 40.2% of the workforce, according to Data USA. And the two biggest industries by employment are Real Estate and Rental and Leasing (20.1%), and Finance and Insurance (17.2%).
The No. 3 richest city in Florida — Golden Beach — is back in the Miami area, a good 46 miles south of Gulf Stream. Situated between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean, Golden Beach is a compact town, with only 172 households. As in Fisher Island and Gulf Stream, the median home value in Golden Beach is more than $2 million and the median property taxes paid per year is in excess of $10,000. Unlike those two cities, Golden Beach’s median income is less than $250,000, though only slightly, at $246,250. The average household income in Golden Beach is $370,512.
The No. 4 richest city in Florida is Manalapan, a small beach community with only 153 total households. The median household income in Manalapan is over $50,000 less than the median household income in No. 3 Golden Beach, $193,125 versus $246,250, respectively. However, Manalapan is buoyed by a median home value in excess of $2 million, over $10,000 in annual property taxes, and high average household income of $364,292.
Out of the top 10 richest cities in Florida, the one that is the largest is No. 10 Palm Beach, which is home to 5,359 households. Palm Beach’s median household income is $168,787 and its mean household income is $332,764. The biggest industry in Palm Beach by employment is Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services, which accounts for 28.5% of the workforce.
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