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Nonbinary and Transgender Identities and Earnings: Evidence from a National Census

C. Carpenter et al.

American Economic Review: Insights2026https://doi.org/10.1257/aeri.20240571article
AJG 3ABDC A*
Weight
0.50

Abstract

We provide the first evidence from a large population census on earnings disparities experienced by nonbinary people—individuals who do not exclusively identify as men or women—and transgender people—individuals whose gender differs from their sex assigned at birth—relative to cisgender people. Using restricted-access 2021 Canadian census data linked to tax records, we find that nonbinary individuals assigned male at birth, transgender men, transgender women, and cisgender women all earn significantly less than comparable cisgender men. Nonbinary individuals assigned female at birth experience an additional earnings penalty. Differences in job sorting explain some of these disparities. (JEL J16, J31, J71)

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/aeri.20240571

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@article{c.2026,
  title        = {{Nonbinary and Transgender Identities and Earnings: Evidence from a National Census}},
  author       = {C. Carpenter et al.},
  journal      = {American Economic Review: Insights},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/aeri.20240571},
}

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Nonbinary and Transgender Identities and Earnings: Evidence from a National Census

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.