In the Western resort town, the wealthy make 132 times more, on average, than everyone else, according to the EPI report.
On a recent July weekend, I drove down to spend a few days in Jackson and get a feel for like in the most unequal place in the country.
I had to drive through the iconic Teton mountain range to get to Jackson.
At least 12 peaks in the Teton Range reach over 12,000 feet high.
It's home to three ski resorts: Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, Snow King Mountain, and Grand Targhee Resort.
A day pass to ski at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, which USA Today recently ranked as the second-best ski resort in the US, starts at $99 for an adult — and that doesn't include equipment rental.
In fact, more people visit in the summertime than in the winter, Kate Sollitt, the executive director of the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Board, told me.
"Summertime is very busy in Jackson as we are the gateway to two national parks," Sollitt said.
When I visited on a recent July weekend, the streets of Jackson were milling with tourists sightseeing, shopping, eating, and drinking. Traffic through the center of town at times rivaled that of New York City, where I live.
"We've seen it change from a nice little quaint cow town to millionaires," Golliher told me. "And now billionaires are coming in buying out the millionaires."
Marking each corner of the town square are four elk antler arches, which make for popular photo ops.
Many of Jackson's shops, such as Jackson Hole Jewelry Company and Workshop, sell locally made products.
When I went on a Saturday night, I paid a $5 cover charge and my cocktail was about $10, which seemed a bit pricey for Wyoming but not at all outrageous compared to the New York City prices I've gotten used to.
On my first evening in town, I ate at a restaurant called Thai Plate, while sitting outside and enjoying a live music performance from an adjacent bar.
A three-bedroom home in Jackson Hole currently listed for $1.69 million has about 1,771 square feet of living space and sits on just under an acre of land.
One of these is a 280-acre ranch listed for $80 million that comes with a 7,984-square-foot main house and a guest house.
Many wealthy people buying homes in the area either come from Silicon Valley or they're Wall Street types who work in private equity and venture capital, Liebzeit said.
Harrison Ford, Sandra Bullock, Wal-Mart heiress Christy Walton, and former vice president Dick Cheney have all owned homes in the area.
Liebzeit calls Wyoming "the most tax-friendly state in the country" because it has no personal or corporate income tax and no estate or inheritance tax.
Grand Teton National Park is less than a 10-minute drive from the town of Jackson. Yellowstone National Park is about a 40-minute drive away.
Visitors can also book guided trips and wildlife safaris.
American, Delta, and United Airlines fly in and out of Jackson Hole Airport year-round, and Frontier Airlines offers direct flights between Jackson Hole and Denver, Colorado, in the summertime.
A ride on the resort's famous aerial tram, which climbs 4,139 vertical feet up to the top of Rendezvous Mountain at an elevation of 10,450 feet, costs $37 online or $44 in person.
A dude ranch is a guest ranch where people can sleep in cabins or lodges, ride horses, and get a taste of modern cowboy life.
Guests book can book stays at the ranch only for a full period of six nights, from Sunday to Saturday. They can choose between four lodges, four cabins, and a multi-bedroom homestead house.
Rates start at $2,170 per person for six nights, which comes out to about $362 per night, with all meals and activities included. Guests at the ranch can go horseback riding, fly fishing, swimming in a nearby pond, or play games and relax in the main lodge.
I took a tour of Amangani and found that its tailored outdoor activities, wellness amenities, and secluded location on a private mountain road in the least populated state in America gives affluent travelers the privacy and unique experience they crave.
The 1% might stay at places like Amangani — but when I, a member of the 99%, was looking for a place to stay, I found that a room at the Motel 6 on the outskirts of town cost more than $200 per night — and it was completely booked.
I ended up at the second-cheapest option, the Super 8, for $245 per night.
Liebzeit of Jackson Hole Sotheby's International Realty told me that the communities of Alpine, Wyoming, and Victor, Idaho are much more affordable towns where some of the 99% live.
They're about 30-35 minutes away and a bus service connects them to Jackson, Liebzeit said.
Victor lies within the borders of the Jackson metropolitan area, while Alpine is on the outskirts.
The restaurants and shops in town were stylized, polished, and catering to wealthy residents and tourists; the homes were beautiful and well maintained; and tourist amenities like Jackson Hole Mountain Resort were pristine.
Although the income gap in Jackson is extreme, the spectrum is skewed extremely high because of just how rich the area's 1% are — with an average income of more than $16.1 million.
The average income of the metro area's bottom 99%, on the other hand — $122,447 — is still almost double the state of Wyoming's average income of $62,593.
So while Jackson is technically the most unequal place in America, as far as I could tell, it's hardly a typical example of stark inequality.
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