Measures of Farm Household Well-Being Tell Different Stories

Traditionally, the economic well-being of households is gauged by indicators of the financial resources available–— household income and, when available, wealth. ERS publishes estimates of farm household income and wealth based on responses to USDA’s annual Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS). Since 1998, average farm operator household income has exceeded that of the typical U.S. household by 3 to 21 percent, and median farm household wealth has been 4-5 times that of all U.S. households. But the variability of income complicates farm-nonfarm comparisons.