A recent aha! Process PowerPoint presentation provided a snapshot of poverty in the United States. The data in the PowerPoint is timely enough that it is also presented in this blog post.
To start with a sobering statistic, 16.3% of Americans under 18 years of age live in poverty, as of 2023. That’s about 12 million children living in poverty. Statistics vary by state—9.5% of Utah children live in poverty, while that rate is 27.8% for children in Mississippi. Even more sobering is that the 16.3% child poverty rate is 3.7% higher than the overall poverty rate.
Federal poverty guidelines are as follows:
- Household of 1: $14,850
- Household of 2: $19,720
- Household of 3: $24,860
- Household of 4: $30,000
The median household income in the United States is $80,610. A total of 7.4% of all U.S. households make less than $15,000, 6.7% of U.S. households make between $15,000 and $24,999, and 6.9% of U.S. households make between $35,000 and $49,999.
In terms of race/ethnicity, 29% of African American children live in poverty, 27% of Native American children live in poverty, and 22% of Hispanic/Latino children live in poverty. For the general population, 24.2% of Native Americans live in poverty, 20.6% of African Americans live in poverty, and 16.6% of Hispanics/Latinos live in poverty.
To access the full PowerPoint, click here.
