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The share of Americans living in poverty fell to a record low last year, new federal data shows, but millions remain below the poverty line across all 50 states.
Around 34.5 million Americans were living in poverty in 2025, according to the Census Bureau, as the official poverty rate fell from 10.7 percent to 10.2 percent. It was the second consecutive annual decline and the lowest rate recorded under the measure. Poverty among children also fell to a record-low 13.4 percent. Median household income also increased 2.6 percent to a record $87,460.
The headline figures offer one measure of how American households were faring during the first year of President Donald Trump's second term, as his administration has pointed to rising incomes and falling poverty as signs of economic improvement.
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"President Trump’s proven economic agenda delivered historic working-class prosperity in his first year back in office, with record-high real income and record-low poverty—breaking the records he set during his first term," White House spokesperson Olivia Wales told Newsweek regarding the figures. "The President was reelected in a landslide victory to turn the page on Joe Biden’s inflation crisis, and he remains laser-focused on doubling down on his winning economic agenda of tax cuts, deregulation, and energy abundance here at home to drive economic prosperity for everyday Americans."
The Official Poverty Measure (OPM), which is also used for the state figures below, compares a family's pretax cash income with a national poverty threshold. It does not count benefits such as SNAP or tax credits, account for medical and work expenses, or adjust for differences in housing costs across the country. The Census Bureau's broader Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM), which incorporates those factors, stood at 13.1 percent in 2025 and was not statistically different from the previous year.
Even under the official measure, however, poverty is far from evenly distributed. The latest Census data shows millions of people living below the poverty line in the country's largest states over the last three years, while some much smaller states stand out because poverty affects a large share of residents.
Which States Have the Most People in Poverty?
California had the largest number of people living in poverty under OPM, averaging about 4.17 million over the three-year period. It was followed by Texas, with 3.61 million; Florida, 2.82 million; and New York, 2.13 million. Together, those four states account for about 12.7 million people, or roughly 36 percent of the table's national three-year average of 35.84 million.
The next-highest totals were North Carolina, at 1.43 million; Georgia, 1.37 million; Illinois, 1.31 million; Ohio, 1.30 million; Pennsylvania, 1.19 million; and Michigan, 1.15 million.
California, Texas, Florida and New York are among the country's largest states by population, meaning a large poverty population does not necessarily translate into an unusually high poverty rate. Population estimates put Texas at about 31.7 million residents in 2025, for example, while New York had about 20 million.
Some considerably smaller population states stand out due to the proportion of those in poverty. Louisiana, with around 4.62 million residents in 2025, had an official poverty rate of 28.1 percent among children, 17.5 percent among people ages 18 to 64 and 15.4 percent among seniors.
Mississippi, which has a population of about 2.95 million, was another standout: 24.9 percent of children, 15.7 percent of working-age adults and 14.7 percent of seniors were in poverty. New Mexico, with around just 2.1 million residents, recorded rates of 20.9 percent for children and 15.4 percent for adults ages 18 to 64.
Where Are the Most Children in Poverty?
Texas surpassed California for children living in poverty across 2023 to 2025. Census data shows an average of about 1.24 million children in poverty in Texas, compared with 1.12 million in California. Florida was third with 678,000, followed by New York with 501,000, Georgia with 446,000, North Carolina with 418,000 and Ohio with 410,000.
Again, the percentage figures tell a different story. Louisiana's 28.1 percent child poverty rate was the highest among states, followed by Mississippi at 24.9 percent.
What About Seniors?
California had the largest number of people 65 and older living in poverty, at about 743,000, followed by Florida at 575,000, Texas at 525,000 and New York at 461,000.
Pennsylvania had about 255,000 seniors in poverty, followed by Illinois with 223,000 and North Carolina with 218,000.
But the highest senior poverty rates were again concentrated elsewhere. Louisiana's rate was 15.4 percent, Mississippi's 14.7 percent and Alabama's 13.5 percent, illustrating the difference between having a large number of people in poverty and having poverty affect an unusually large share of a state's population.
Upcoming policy battles will center on the implementation and possible revision of recent SNAP cuts and work requirements, including proposed state cost-sharing for benefits beginning in 2027, as well as efforts to restore or modify nutrition assistance through future legislation.
On the tax side, lawmakers are likely to debate the structure and reach of refundable credits and other tax benefits for low- and middle-income families, alongside broader questions about how tax policy should interact with poverty programs.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Daniel Orton and James Debens
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