I think the problem is as you stated comparing middle class in a relative way. If you apply US income standards to other countries, the portion of the other cou

I think the problem is as you stated comparing middle class in a relative way. If you apply US income standards to other countries, the portion of the other countries population that's living in middle drops significantly. > When the Western European countries the Center analyzed are viewed through the lens of middle-class incomes in the U.S., the share of adults who are middle class decreases in most of them. The greatest decline is in Italy, where the middle-class share in 2010 falls from 67% under that country’s national income standard to 44% under the U.S. income standard. In other words, 44% of Italians had the same standard of living as 59% of Americans who were in the middle class in 2010. The research is a bit old, but I couldn't find a more recent source. I imagine the relationship hasn't changed much as US has experienced significantly growth since 2010 relative to Europe. [0] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/06/05/through-an-american-lens-western-europes-middle-classes-appear-smaller/ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/06/05/through-an-...