U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

census.gov

Changes in Areas With Concentrated

Poverty: 2000 to 20101

American Community Survey Reports

Issued June 2014

ACS-27

By Alemayehu Bishaw

INTRODUCTION1

This report largely compares Census 2000 poverty 

estimates with those based on the 2008–2012 5-year 

American Community Survey (ACS). As 2010 represents the midpoint of this period, for convenience the 

remainder of this report refers to these 2008–2012 ACS 

poverty statistics as 2010 estimates.

In 2010, approximately 14.9 percent of the total 

U.S. population lived in poverty. However, poverty is 

not distributed evenly across neighborhoods. There 

are neighborhoods in every state that have higher than 

average poverty rates. The U.S. Census Bureau designates any census tract with a poverty rate of 20.0 

percent or more as a “poverty area.” In 2010, more than 

77 million people lived in poverty areas.

Between 1990 and 2000, the percentage of people 

living in poverty areas fell from 20.0 percent to 18.1 

percent. This trend was reversed in the past decade. 

Between 2000 and 2010, the percentage of people 

living in poverty areas grew from 18.1 percent to 25.7 

percent. While the overall population grew by 10 percent over the decade, the number of people living in 

poverty areas grew by about 56 percent.

A recent report from The Century Foundation and the 

Rutgers Center for Urban Research and Education found 

that after substantial declines in the concentration of 

1 The estimates for 2000 are from the Census 2000 sample survey 

collected from a sample of 19 million households using the long form. 

For more on Census 2000, see <www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs

/prodpr03-1.pdf>. The estimates for 2010 are from 2008–2012 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year data. For more information on 

the ACS, see the text box “What Is the American Community Survey?” 

To avoid repetitive wording, the 2008–2012 ACS 5-year estimate is 

referred to as the 2010 estimate.

poverty in the 1990s, the concentration of poverty has 

surged once again since 2000. This report found that 

while concentrated poverty has returned to—and in 

some ways exceeded—the previous peak level of 1990, 

there are substantial differences in how concentrated 

poverty is manifested. In particular, the authors found 

that the residents of high poverty neighborhoods are 

more demographically diverse than in the past.2

Various researchers have found that living in communities with a large concentration of people in poverty 

adds burdens to low-income families. Problems associated with living in poverty areas, such as, higher crime 

rates, poor housing conditions, and fewer job opportunities are exacerbated when poor families live clustered in high-poverty neighborhoods.3 In recognition 

of these burdens, some government programs target 

resources to these high-poverty neighborhoods. Many 

of these programs use the Census Bureau’s definition of 

“poverty areas” (census tracts with poverty rates of 20 

percent or more) to identify such areas.4

2 Paul A. Jargowsky, “Concentration of Poverty in the New Millennium.” Changes in Prevalence, Composition, and Location of High Poverty Neighborhoods. A report by The Century Foundation and Rutgers 

Center for Urban Research and Education. Jargowsky focuses on census 

tracts with poverty rates above 40 percent while this report primarily 

examines tracts with rates above 20 percent. 3 For example, see “The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America: Case Studies From Communities Across the U.S.A.,” a 

joint project of the Community Affairs Offices of the Federal Reserve 

System and the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution. (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, 2008). 4 For example see, the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and 

Bill of Rights Act in Section 103(a) Allows Basic State Grant projects 

whose activities or products target poverty areas to receive as much as 

90 percent in federal support, and the New Market Tax Credit program, 

enacted in December 2000 as part of the Community Renewal Tax 

Relief Act, defines eligibility as projects in census tracts with a poverty 

rate of at least 20 percent.
2 U.S. Census Bureau

Census tracts are the basic geographic unit used to analyze the 

characteristics of the population 

and neighborhoods. Three previous Census Bureau reports have 

described the characteristics of 

people living in census tracts with 

different levels of poverty. Reports 

published in 1995 and 2005 analyzed data from 1990 and 2000 

decennial censuses. A report published in 2011 used the 2006–2010 

5-year ACS data.5 See text box for a 

description of census tracts.

This report uses data from Census 

2000 and the 2008–2012 5-year 

ACS to analyze the changes in the 

spatial distribution and socioeconomic characteristics of the 

people living in poverty areas.6

The report uses two sets of distributions (of people, families, 

and households) to examine the 

changes between these years. The 

first set shows the distribution of 

everyone living in poverty areas, 

while the second set shows those 

in poverty living in poverty areas.7

5 The ACS collects and releases data by 

calendar year for geographic areas that meet 

specific population thresholds. 1-year estimates are published for areas with populations of 65,000 or more, 3-year estimates for 

populations of 20,000 or more, and 5-year 

estimates for populations of almost any size. 

ACS 1-, 3-, and 5-year estimates are period 

estimates, which means they represent the 

characteristics of the population and housing 

over a specific data collection period. Data 

are combined to produce 12 months, 36 

months, or 60 months of data. 6 This report examines the percentage 

and number of people living in census tracts 

with poverty rates of 20 percent or greater 

(poverty areas). A series of appendix tables 

provides estimates of the number and percentage of people living in census tracts with 

various levels of poverty: below the national 

average (14.9 percent), between 14.9 percent 

and 20 percent, between 20 percent and 40 

percent; and greater than 40 percent. 7 All population numbers in this report 

refers only those included in poverty 

universe. The poverty universe includes 

individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters and excludes children 

under age 15 who are not related to the 

householder, people living in institutional 

group quarters, and people living in college 

dormitories or military barracks. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Nationally, about 77 million 

people or 25.7 percent of the 

U.S. population lived in poverty 

areas in 2010.

• Both the number and proportion of people living in poverty 

areas increased between 2000 

and 2010.

• Of the 45 million people in 

poverty, more than half lived in 

poverty areas in 2010.

• In Louisiana, West Virginia, and 

the District of Columbia, both the 

number and proportion of people 

living in poverty areas declined 

between 2000 and 2010.

• Of the people living in poverty 

areas in 2010, 51.1 percent lived 

in central cities of metropolitan 

areas, 28.6 percent in suburban 

areas, and 20.4 percent lived 

outside of metropolitan areas. 

• Of all female householders, no 

husband present, family households, 38.4 percent lived in poverty areas in 2010, the largest 

proportion among all types of 

family households. 

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION

Table 1a shows the numbers and 

proportions of all people living in 

census tracts with poverty rates 

of 20 percent or greater, for the 

nation, regions, states, and the 

District of Columbia, in 2000 and 

2010. Table 1b shows the number and proportions of people in 

Census Tracts are small, relatively permanent statistical subdivisions of a county or equivalent entity that are updated by local participants prior to each decennial census as part of the Census Bureau’s 

Participant Statistical Areas Program. The Census Bureau delineates 

census tracts in situations where no local participant existed or where 

state, local, or tribal governments declined to participate. The primary purpose of census tracts is to provide a stable set of geographic 

units for the presentation of statistical data.

Census tracts generally have a population size between 1,200 and 

8,000 people, with an optimum size of 4,000 people. A census tract 

usually covers a contiguous area; however, the spatial size of census 

tracts varies widely depending on the density of settlement. Census 

tract boundaries are delineated with the intention of being maintained 

over a long time so that statistical comparisons can be made from 

census to census. Census tracts occasionally are split due to population growth or merged as a result of substantial population decline.

Census tract boundaries generally follow visible and identifiable 

features. They may follow nonvisible legal boundaries, such as minor 

civil division or incorporated place boundaries in some states and 

situations, to allow for census-tract-to-governmental-unit relationships where the governmental boundaries tend to remain unchanged 

between censuses. State and county boundaries always are census 

tract boundaries in the standard census geographic hierarchy. Tribal 

census tracts are a unique geographic entity defined within federally 

recognized American Indian reservations and off-reservation trust 

lands and can cross state and county boundaries. Tribal census tracts 

may be completely different from the census tracts and block groups 

defined by state and county.
U.S. Census Bureau 3

Table 1a. 

Number and Percentage of People Living in Poverty Areas by Region and by State: 

2000 and 20101—Con.

Geography

2010 2000 Difference (2010 - 2000)

Number2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

 United States . .

Regions

 77,415,102 68,299 25 .7 0 .1 49,488,516 30,291 18 .1 0 .1 *27,926,586 74,714 *7 .6 0 .1 

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . 10,684,069 14,525 19 .9 0 .1 8,611,401 12,819 16 .5 0 .1 *2,072,668 19,373 *3 .3 0 .1 

Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . 14,031,682 19,647 21 .5 0 .1 7,340,797 12,173 11 .7 0 .1 *6,690,885 23,112 *9 .8 0 .1 

South . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34,433,428 40,317 30 .8 0 .1 21,198,933 19,475 21 .8 0 .1 *13,234,495 44,774 *9 .0 0 .1 

West . . . . . . . . . . . . .

States

 18,265,923 26,674 25 .9 0 .1 12,337,385 15,026 20 .0 0 .1 *5,928,538 30,615 *5 .9 0 .1 

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . 1,678,249 7,157 36 .0 0 .1 1,110,356 4,346 25 .6 0 .1 *567,893 6,315 *10 .4 0 .1 

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . 54,468 993 7 .8 0 .1 50,534 950 8 .2 0 .2 *3,934 1,126 *–0 .4 0 .2 

Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . 2,091,968 9,313 33 .4 0 .1 1,203,894 5,630 24 .0 0 .1 *888,074 8,865 *9 .4 0 .2 

Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . 1,097,807 4,609 38 .8 0 .1 599,602 3,248 23 .1 0 .1 *498,205 4,282 *15 .7 0 .2 

California . . . . . . . . . . 10,153,710 19,699 27 .8 0 .1 8,183,939 14,608 24 .7 0 .1 *1,969,771 19,620 *3 .0 0 .1 

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . 1,050,584 5,239 21 .3 0 .1 398,957 2,873 9 .5 0 .1 *651,627 4,450 *11 .8 0 .1 

Connecticut . . . . . . . . 487,048 3,746 14 .1 0 .1 326,484 2,993 9 .9 0 .1 *160,564 3,986 *4 .2 0 .1 

Delaware . . . . . . . . . . 109,473 2,108 12 .5 0 .2 44,778 1,133 5 .9 0 .2 *64,695 1,734 *6 .6 0 .2 

District of Columbia . . 197,441 2,275 34 .5 0 .3 223,387 1,999 41 .2 0 .4 *–25,946 2,674 *–6 .7 0 .5 

Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,922,423 16,701 26 .6 0 .1 2,555,651 8,604 16 .4 0 .1 *2,366,772 13,670 *10 .3 0 .1 

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . 3,256,489 9,438 34 .5 0 .1 1,578,833 6,621 19 .8 0 .1 *1,677,656 9,751 *14 .6 0 .1 

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . 157,958 2,752 11 .9 0 .1 152,314 1,741 12 .9 0 .1 *5,644 2,416 *–1 .0 0 .2 

Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285,808 2,776 18 .6 0 .1 78,103 1,294 6 .2 0 .1 *207,705 2,228 *12 .4 0 .2 

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,723,643 8,002 21 .7 0 .1 1,758,882 5,863 14 .5 0 .1 *964,761 8,635 *7 .2 0 .1 

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,450,017 5,445 23 .1 0 .1 549,510 3,895 9 .3 0 .1 *900,507 5,769 *13 .7 0 .1 

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409,690 3,518 13 .9 0 .1 131,433 1,563 4 .7 0 .1 *278,257 2,736 *9 .2 0 .1 

Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . 546,758 3,475 19 .8 0 .1 238,669 2,055 9 .2 0 .1 *308,089 3,346 *10 .6 0 .1 

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . 1,654,829 5,392 39 .3 0 .1 1,173,053 4,337 29 .9 0 .1 *481,776 5,732 *9 .4 0 .1 

Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . 1,649,147 7,005 37 .5 0 .1 1,780,593 4,898 41 .1 0 .1 *–131,446 6,745 *–3 .6 0 .2 

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226,101 1,710 17 .5 0 .1 88,027 1,262 7 .1 0 .1 *138,074 1,723 *10 .4 0 .1 

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . 613,974 4,811 10 .9 0 .1 427,204 3,454 8 .3 0 .1 *186,770 4,695 *2 .6 0 .1 

Massachusetts . . . . . . 1,019,696 4,689 16 .1 0 .1 755,720 4,492 12 .3 0 .1 *263,976 5,602 *3 .8 0 .1 

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . 2,639,122 5,631 27 .3 0 .1 1,347,673 4,755 13 .9 0 .1 *1,291,449 6,639 *13 .4 0 .1 

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . 683,074 3,378 13 .2 0 .1 302,632 2,350 6 .3 0 .1 *380,442 3,434 *6 .8 0 .1 

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . 1,393,238 4,824 48 .5 0 .1 1,130,227 3,902 41 .1 0 .2 *263,011 5,213 *7 .4 0 .2 

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . 1,442,324 5,854 24 .9 0 .1 811,695 3,668 14 .9 0 .1 *630,629 5,251 *9 .9 0 .1 

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . 232,047 1,881 24 .0 0 .1 180,230 1,671 20 .5 0 .2 *51,817 2,068 *3 .5 0 .2 

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . 299,390 2,569 16 .9 0 .1 125,794 1,505 7 .6 0 .1 *173,596 2,264 *9 .3 0 .1 

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . 635,378 5,171 23 .8 0 .1 213,886 2,569 10 .9 0 .1 *421,492 4,291 *12 .9 0 .2 

New Hampshire . . . . . 86,341 1,862 6 .8 0 .1 19,135 606 1 .6 0 .1 *67,206 1,274 *5 .2 0 .1 

New Jersey . . . . . . . . 1,212,293 5,299 14 .1 0 .1 846,031 4,807 10 .3 0 .1 *366,262 6,182 *3 .8 0 .1 

New Mexico . . . . . . . . 865,750 4,525 43 .0 0 .2 658,125 3,082 36 .9 0 .2 *207,625 4,444 *6 .1 0 .2 

New York . . . . . . . . . . 5,025,049 10,634 26 .6 0 .1 4,730,322 11,038 25 .6 0 .1 *294,727 13,676 *1 .0 0 .1 

North Carolina . . . . . . 2,957,058 10,770 31 .8 0 .1 1,089,038 4,629 14 .0 0 .1 *1,868,020 8,204 *17 .9 0 .1 

North Dakota . . . . . . . 74,882 1,117 11 .5 0 .1 62,414 784 10 .1 0 .1 *12,468 1,058 *1 .4 0 .2 

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,767,943 7,376 24 .7 0 .1 1,486,769 5,007 13 .5 0 .1 *1,281,174 7,694 *11 .2 0 .1 

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . 1,140,311 5,407 31 .4 0 .1 808,783 3,743 24 .2 0 .1 *331,528 5,096 *7 .1 0 .1 

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . 984,484 5,675 26 .2 0 .1 341,706 2,649 10 .2 0 .1 *642,778 4,516 *16 .0 0 .1 

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . 2,353,571 6,062 19 .2 0 .1 1,614,620 5,214 13 .6 0 .1 *738,951 7,309 *5 .6 0 .1 

Rhode Island . . . . . . .

See footnotes at end 

 214,242 

of table .

 2,860 21 .2 0 .2 207,391 2,240 20 .5 0 .2 *6,851 2,892 *0 .7 0 .3 
4 U.S. Census Bureau

poverty living in poverty areas. 

Nationally, both the number and 

proportion of people living in poverty areas increased from 49.5 million (18.1 percent) in 2000 to 77.4 

million (25.7 percent) in 2010. More 

than half of the people in poverty 

(53.5 percent) lived in poverty areas 

in 2010, an increase from 44.4 percent in 2000 (see Table 1b). 

Both the number and proportion of people living in poverty 

areas increased in all four regions 

between 2000 and 2010 (see Table 

1a). Among the four regions, the 

Northeast region had the smallest percentage point increase in 

the proportion of people living 

in poverty areas (3.3 percentage 

points) between 2000 and 2010. 

The Midwest region, which had 

the lowest percentage of people 

living in poverty areas in 2000, 

saw the largest percentage point 

increase (9.8 percentage points in 

Table 1a. 

Number and Percentage of People Living in Poverty Areas by Region and by State: 

2000 and 20101—Con.

Geography

2010 2000 Difference (2010 - 2000)

Number2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

States—Con .

South Carolina . . . . . . 1,579,936 7,136 35 .2 0 .1 806,795 4,411 20 .8 0 .1 *773,141 6,603 *14 .4 0 .2 

South Dakota . . . . . . . 132,754 1,460 16 .9 0 .2 99,455 1,293 13 .7 0 .2 *33,299 1,761 *3 .2 0 .2 

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . 2,064,568 7,656 33 .3 0 .1 958,174 4,912 17 .3 0 .1 *1,106,394 7,233 *16 .0 0 .1 

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,413,919 16,572 34 .2 0 .1 5,676,966 9,669 28 .0 0 .1 *2,736,953 14,722 *6 .2 0 .1 

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449,428 3,623 16 .5 0 .1 231,480 2,176 10 .5 0 .1 *217,948 3,175 *6 .0 0 .1 

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . 59,728 847 9 .9 0 .1 23,671 554 4 .0 0 .1 *36,057 813 *5 .9 0 .1 

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,141,612 5,548 14 .7 0 .1 642,093 4,209 9 .4 0 .1 *499,519 5,784 *5 .3 0 .1 

Washington . . . . . . . . 1,254,743 6,894 19 .0 0 .1 608,152 4,070 10 .5 0 .1 *646,591 5,909 *8 .4 0 .1 

West Virginia . . . . . . . 562,954 3,943 31 .3 0 .1 593,400 3,001 33 .6 0 .2 *–30,446 3,964 *–2 .3 0 .2 

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . 862,085 3,754 15 .6 0 .1 425,871 2,760 8 .2 0 .1 *436,214 3,923 *7 .4 0 .1 

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . 49,597 1,124 9 .0 0 .1 36,065 806 7 .5 0 .2 *13,532 1,082 *1 .5 0 .2 

* Change is statistically different from zero at the 90 percent confidence level .

1

 Data from 2000 were obtained from Census 2000 sample survey, while the data for 2010 were obtained from 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey .

2

 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are 

not related to the householder, people living in institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 3

 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in 

relation to the size of the estimate, the less reliable the estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval .

Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding .

Source: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .

HOW POVERTY IS MEASURED

Poverty status is determined by comparing annual income 

to a set of dollar values called poverty thresholds that vary 

by family size, the number of related children, and the age 

of the householder. If a family’s before-tax money income is 

less than the dollar value of the corresponding threshold, 

then that family and every individual in it are considered 

to be in poverty. For people not living in families, poverty 

status is determined by comparing the individual’s income 

to a poverty threshold for one adult.

The poverty thresholds are updated annually to reflect 

changes in the cost of living using the Consumer Price 

Index (CPI-U). They do not vary geographically. 

The ACS is a continuous survey, and people respond 

throughout the year. Since income is reported for the previous 12 months, the appropriate poverty threshold for each 

family is determined by multiplying the base-year poverty 

threshold (1982) by the average of monthly CPI values for 

the 12 months preceding the survey month.

For more information, see “How Poverty Is Calculated in the 

ACS” at <www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty

/poverty-cal-in-acs.pdf>.
U.S. Census Bureau 5

Table 1b. 

Number and Percentage of People in Poverty Living in Poverty Areas by Region and 

by State: 2000 and 20101—Con.

Geography

2010 2000 Difference (2010 - 2000)

Number2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

 United States . . 23,982,748 55,769 53 .5 0 .4 15,046,608 13,786 44 .4 0 .2 *8,936,140 57,447 *9 .1 0 .4 

Regions

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . 3,415,297 24,509 50 .3 0 .2 2,750,065 5,802 46 .5 0 .1 *665,232 25,186 *3 .8 0 .2 

Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . 4,527,352 31,361 49 .1 0 .2 2,285,167 5,786 35 .9 0 .1 *2,242,185 31,890 *13 .2 0 .2 

South . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,511,068 73,768 57 .3 0 .2 6,334,848 8,788 46 .7 0 .1 *4,176,220 74,289 *10 .6 0 .2 

West . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,529,031 37,286 52 .7 0 .2 3,676,528 6,759 45 .7 0 .1 *1,852,503 37,894 *7 .1 0 .2 

States

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . 507,274 8,416 60 .2 0 .7 346,159 1,998 49 .6 0 .3 *161,115 8,650 *10 .6 0 .7 

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,345 959 21 .5 1 .4 12,455 436 21 .6 0 .8 *1,890 1,053 –0 .1 1 .6 

Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . 689,042 10,720 64 .1 0 .7 375,586 2,453 53 .8 0 .4 *313,456 10,997 *10 .3 0 .8 

Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . 319,487 6,116 60 .2 0 .7 169,801 1,510 41 .2 0 .4 *149,686 6,299 *19 .0 0 .8 

California . . . . . . . . . . 3,088,052 24,224 55 .2 0 .2 2,463,245 6,377 52 .3 0 .1 *624,807 25,049 *2 .9 0 .3 

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . 305,633 6,111 48 .2 0 .7 110,068 1,343 28 .3 0 .3 *195,565 6,257 *19 .9 0 .8 

Connecticut . . . . . . . . 156,613 4,448 45 .4 1 .0 100,154 1,368 38 .6 0 .5 *56,459 4,654 *6 .9 1 .1 

Delaware . . . . . . . . . . 32,967 1,894 32 .8 1 .6 14,822 596 21 .2 0 .9 *18,145 1,986 *11 .5 1 .8 

District of Columbia . . 66,001 2,764 62 .5 1 .6 73,685 857 67 .3 0 .8 *–7,684 2,894 *–4 .8 1 .8 

Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,472,389 18,177 51 .0 0 .4 758,283 4,008 38 .8 0 .2 *714,106 18,613 *12 .2 0 .5 

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . 990,707 13,694 60 .2 0 .5 465,472 2,977 45 .0 0 .3 *525,235 14,014 *15 .2 0 .6 

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . 44,979 2,572 31 .5 1 .4 39,203 786 31 .1 0 .6 *5,776 2,690 0 .4 1 .5 

Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84,326 3,145 36 .4 1 .1 23,271 670 15 .6 0 .5 *61,055 3,216 *20 .8 1 .2 

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . 864,964 11,379 50 .6 0 .5 563,886 2,696 43 .6 0 .2 *301,078 11,694 *6 .9 0 .5 

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . 459,048 8,035 49 .5 0 .6 162,456 1,873 29 .0 0 .3 *296,592 8,251 *20 .5 0 .7 

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121,802 3,713 33 .8 0 .8 41,549 824 16 .1 0 .3 *80,253 3,803 *17 .7 0 .8 

Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . 165,564 4,390 45 .3 0 .9 66,767 982 25 .9 0 .4 *98,797 4,499 *19 .4 1 .0 

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . 495,336 7,326 63 .4 0 .5 340,467 1,876 54 .8 0 .3 *154,869 7,562 *8 .6 0 .6 

Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . 510,394 7,577 62 .2 0 .6 564,407 2,085 66 .3 0 .2 *–54,013 7,858 *–4 .2 0 .6 

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60,461 2,305 35 .2 1 .0 22,549 605 16 .6 0 .4 *37,912 2,383 *18 .6 1 .1 

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . 182,100 5,114 34 .2 0 .7 133,912 1,683 30 .5 0 .4 *48,188 5,384 *3 .7 0 .8 

Massachusetts . . . . . . 314,820 6,386 45 .1 0 .7 221,872 2,035 38 .7 0 .4 *92,948 6,702 *6 .4 0 .8 

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . 896,763 10,273 56 .7 0 .4 427,679 2,201 41 .9 0 .2 *469,084 10,506 *14 .8 0 .5 

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . 215,478 4,234 37 .0 0 .6 90,897 1,161 23 .9 0 .3 *124,581 4,390 *13 .1 0 .7 

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . 448,926 8,261 70 .1 0 .8 345,963 1,708 63 .1 0 .3 *102,963 8,435 *7 .0 0 .8 

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . 427,197 7,721 49 .2 0 .6 231,415 1,695 36 .3 0 .3 *195,782 7,905 *12 .9 0 .6 

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . 63,246 2,472 44 .2 1 .2 50,441 772 39 .3 0 .6 *12,805 2,589 *4 .9 1 .4 

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . 88,981 3,311 40 .4 1 .2 35,540 735 22 .0 0 .5 *53,441 3,391 *18 .4 1 .3 

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . 191,202 6,144 50 .4 1 .2 58,859 1,206 28 .6 0 .6 *132,343 6,261 *21 .8 1 .3 

New Hampshire . . . . . 23,228 2,010 21 .5 1 .7 6,100 331 7 .8 0 .4 *17,128 2,037 *13 .8 1 .7 

New Jersey . . . . . . . . 366,567 7,005 43 .1 0 .7 252,202 2,216 36 .0 0 .3 *114,365 7,347 *7 .1 0 .7 

New Mexico . . . . . . . . 263,404 6,777 67 .0 0 .9 199,456 1,340 60 .6 0 .4 *63,948 6,908 *6 .4 1 .0 

New York . . . . . . . . . . 1,627,329 15,321 57 .8 0 .4 1,557,283 4,769 57 .8 0 .2 *70,046 16,046 0 .0 0 .4 

North Carolina . . . . . . 870,829 12,439 55 .7 0 .5 300,385 2,172 31 .3 0 .2 *570,444 12,627 *24 .4 0 .6 

North Dakota . . . . . . . 24,548 1,406 31 .1 1 .5 17,164 380 23 .4 0 .5 *7,384 1,457 *7 .7 1 .6 

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 931,590 10,658 54 .1 0 .5 469,787 2,341 40 .1 0 .2 *461,803 10,912 *13 .9 0 .5 

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . 329,796 5,460 54 .7 0 .7 217,584 1,665 44 .3 0 .3 *112,212 5,708 *10 .4 0 .7 

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . 272,530 5,952 46 .7 0 .6 90,757 1,261 23 .3 0 .3 *181,773 6,084 *23 .3 0 .7 

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . 780,831 9,828 48 .7 0 .4 519,804 2,468 39 .9 0 .2 *261,027 10,133 *8 .8 0 .5 

Rhode Island . . . . . . .

See footnotes at end 

 68,414 

of table .

 2,931 51 .3 1 .5 63,553 956 52 .7 0 .8 *4,861 3,083 –1 .5 1 .7 
6 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 1b. 

Number and Percentage of People in Poverty Living in Poverty Areas by Region and 

by State: 2000 and 20101—Con.

Geography

2010 2000 Difference (2010 - 2000)

Number2

Margin 

of 

error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±) Number2

Margin 

of 

 error3

(±)

Percent2

Margin 

 of 

error3

(±)

States—Con .

South Carolina . . . . . . 466,916 8,321 59 .3 0 .7 222,368 2,005 40 .6 0 .4 *244,548 8,559 *18 .7 0 .8 

South Dakota . . . . . . . 43,807 2,020 40 .4 1 .3 34,702 657 36 .2 0 .7 *9,105 2,124 *4 .3 1 .5 

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . 625,180 9,519 58 .5 0 .6 282,873 2,313 37 .9 0 .3 *342,307 9,796 *20 .6 0 .6 

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,695,760 21,546 63 .1 0 .3 1,743,286 4,192 55 .9 0 .1 *952,474 21,950 *7 .2 0 .3 

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136,429 4,572 41 .4 1 .1 69,898 1,028 33 .9 0 .5 *66,531 4,686 *7 .5 1 .2 

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . 17,034 1,093 24 .5 1 .3 6,548 280 11 .8 0 .5 *10,486 1,128 *12 .7 1 .4 

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . 340,647 7,686 39 .7 0 .6 195,185 2,043 29 .7 0 .3 *145,462 7,953 *9 .9 0 .7 

Washington . . . . . . . . 362,043 7,565 42 .4 0 .7 173,759 1,946 28 .4 0 .3 *188,284 7,811 *14 .0 0 .7 

West Virginia . . . . . . . 156,359 4,435 49 .4 1 .1 160,196 1,343 50 .7 0 .4 –3,837 4,634 *–1 .3 1 .2 

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . 287,610 6,055 41 .6 0 .7 143,325 1,381 31 .7 0 .3 *144,285 6,210 *9 .9 0 .7 

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . 13,800 1,048 22 .8 1 .6 9,530 392 17 .4 0 .7 *4,270 1,119 *5 .4 1 .8 

* Change is statistically different from zero at the 90 percent confidence level .

1

 Data from 2000 were obtained from Census 2000 sample survey, while the data for 2010 were obtained from 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey .

2

 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are 

not related to the householder, people living in institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 3

 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in 

relation to the size of the estimate, the less reliable the estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval .

Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding .

Sources: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .

Figure 1. 

People Living in Poverty Areas by Region: 2000 and 2010

(In percent. Data based on sample. For information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling

error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/acs/www/)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data. 

18.1

16.5

11.7

21.8

20.0

25.7

19.9

21.5

25.9

30.8

United States Northeast Midwest South West

2000 2010
U.S. Census Bureau 7

Figure 2. 

Percentage Point Change in Proportion of People Living in Poverty Areas 

by State: 2000 to 2010

(Data based on sample. For information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error, and 

definitions, see www.census.gov/acs/www/)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data. 

–10 –5 0 5 10 15 20

North Carolina

Tennessee

Oregon

Arkansas

Georgia

South Carolina

Indiana

Michigan

Nevada

Idaho

Colorado

Ohio

Kansas

Maine

Alabama

Florida

Missouri

Kentucky

Arizona

Nebraska

Iowa

Washington

United States

Mississippi

Wisconsin

Illinois

Oklahoma

Minnesota

Delaware

Texas

New Mexico

Utah

Vermont

Pennsylvania

Virginia

New Hampshire

Connecticut

Massachusetts

New Jersey

Montana

South Dakota

California

Maryland

Wyoming

North Dakota

New York

Rhode Island

Alaska

Hawaii

West Virginia

Louisiana

District of Columbia

Percent
8 U.S. Census Bureau

the proportion of people living in 

poverty areas) (see Figure 1).8

In 2000, there was no region in 

which the majority of poor people 

lived in poverty areas (see Table 

1b). In 2010, the majority of poor 

people lived in poverty areas in 

three of the four regions. In the 

8 The Northeast region includes the states 

of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The Midwest 

region includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, 

Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, 

Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, 

and Wisconsin. The South region includes 

the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, 

Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, 

South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, 

West Virginia, and the District of Columbia, 

a state equivalent. The West region includes 

the states of Alaska, Arizona, California, 

Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, 

New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and 

Wyoming.

Midwest region, the percentage of 

poor people living in poverty areas 

grew from 35.9 percent in 2000 to 

49.1 percent in 2010. 

Table 1a shows the state-level 

variations in the proportions of 

people living in poverty areas in 

both 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the 

proportion of people living in poverty areas ranged from the low of 

1.6 percent in New Hampshire to a 

high of 41.2 percent for the District 

of Columbia.9 In 2010, these proportions ranged from a low of 6.8 

percent in New Hampshire to 48.5 

percent in Mississippi. 

9 The estimated percentages of people living in poverty areas in 2000 for the District of 

Columbia, Louisiana, and Mississippi were not 

statistically different from each other.

Between 2000 and 2010, in 

Louisiana, West Virginia, and the 

District of Columbia, both the number and percentage of people living 

in poverty areas declined. In Alaska 

and Hawaii, the proportion of people living in poverty areas declined, 

but the number of people living in 

poverty areas increased. New York, 

North Dakota, Rhode Island, and 

Wyoming were among the states 

that had smaller percentage point 

increases. On the other hand, in 

Arkansas, North Carolina, Oregon, 

and Tennessee, the percentage 

point increases in the proportion of 

people living in poverty areas were 

among the largest. Figure 2 shows 

a comparison of percentage point 

changes in proportion of people 

living in poverty areas for all states 

and the District of Columbia.

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

TX

CA

MT

AZ

ID

NV

KS

CO

NM

OR

UT

SD

IL

WY

NE IA

FL

MN

OK

ND

WI

WA

AL GA

MO

PA

AR

LA

NC

MS

NY

IN

MI

VA

TN

KY

SC

OH

ME

WV

VT

NH

NJ

MD

MA

CT

DE

RI

DC

AK

HI

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey.

0 500 Miles

0 100 Miles

0 100 Miles

Percent by state

30.0 or more

25.0–29.9

20.0–24.9

10.0–19.9

People Living in Poverty Areas by State: 2000

U.S. percent is 18.1

Figure 3.

Less than 10.0
U.S. Census Bureau 9

As Table 1b shows, the proportion 

of people in poverty who lived in 

poverty areas also varied considerably across the states. In 2000, the 

proportion of people in poverty 

who lived in poverty areas ranged 

from 7.8 percent in New Hampshire 

to 67.3 percent in the District of 

Columbia. In 2010, this proportion 

ranged from 21.5 percent in Alaska 

and New Hampshire to 70.1 percent 

in Mississippi.10 During this period, 

the number and percentage of 

people in poverty who lived in poverty areas declined in Louisiana and 

the District of Columbia. In West 

Virginia, the percentage of people in 

10 The estimated percentages of people 

in poverty living in poverty areas in 2010 for 

Alaska and New Hampshire were not statistically different from each other.

poverty who lived in poverty areas 

declined, but the number did not 

change. The proportion of people in 

poverty living in poverty areas did 

not change in Alaska, Hawaii, New 

York, and Rhode Island.

Figure 3 and Figure 4 show variations in the percentages of people 

living in poverty areas by state and 

the District of Columbia for 2000 

and 2010. While in 2000, there were 

only four states and the District of 

Columbia with 30 percent or more 

of people living in poverty areas, in 

2010 there were 14 states and the 

District of Columbia with 30 percent 

or more of their populations living 

in poverty areas.11

Figure 5 and Figure 6 show differences in the percentages of people 

living in poverty areas by county 

for 2000 and 2010, respectively. 

In 2000, many of the counties with 

high percentages of people living 

in poverty areas (80.0 to 100.0 

percent) were clustered in and 

around American Indian reservations in Arizona, New Mexico, 

Montana, North Dakota, South 

Dakota, and Oklahoma. Other areas 

with high percentages of people 

living in poverty areas were the 

11 Arizona and New Mexico in the West 

region and Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, 

Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, 

West Virginia, and the District of Columbia 

in the South region had 30 percent or more 

people living in poverty areas.

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

TX

CA

MT

AZ

ID

NV

KS

CO

NM

OR

UT

SD

IL

WY

NE IA

FL

MN

OK

ND

WI

WA

AL GA

MO

PA

AR

LA

NC

MS

NY

IN

MI

VA

TN

KY

SC

OH

ME

WV

VT

NH

NJ

MD

MA

CT

DE

RI

DC

AK

HI

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2008–2012 5–year American Community Survey.

0 500 Miles

0 100 Miles

0 100 Miles

Percent by state

30.0 or more

25.0–29.9

20.0–24.9

10.0–19.9

People Living in Poverty Areas by State: 2010

U.S. percent is 25.7

Figure 4.

Less than 10.0
10 U.S. Census Bureau People Living in Poverty Areas by County: 2000 Figure 5. 0 100 Miles 0 100 Miles 0 500 Miles Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey. Note: The term "county" refers to a county or statistically equivalent entity. 
U.S. Census Bureau 11 People Living in Poverty Areas by County: 2010 Figure 6. 0 100 Miles 0 100 Miles 0 500 Miles Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2008–2012 5–year American Community Survey. Note: The term "county" refers to a county or statistically equivalent entity. 
12 U.S. Census Bureau

Mississippi River delta, southwestern Texas, the West, and the 

Southeast. In 2010, more areas had 

counties with high percentages of 

their population in poverty areas. 

In addition to the areas shown 

in 2000, several counties in the 

South, the Northwest, and Michigan 

had a considerable proportion of 

their population in poverty areas. 

There were fewer counties with low 

percentages (0.0 to 9.9 percent) of 

their population living in poverty 

areas in 2010 than in 2000.

SELECTED DEMOGRAPHIC 

AND SOCIOECONOMIC 

CHARACTERISTICS

Table 2a shows the number and 

percentage of all people living in 

poverty areas by various characteristics for 2000 and 2010. Table 

2b shows the number and percentage of people in poverty living in 

poverty areas for the same period. 

Figure 7 shows percentage point 

changes between 2000 and 2010 

in proportion of people living in 

poverty areas for the selected 

characteristics.

Age

The number and percentage of 

people living in poverty areas 

increased for all three major age 

groups between 2000 and 2010. 

In 2000, of the total 49.5 million 

people living in poverty areas, 

14.4 million were children under 

18 years of age, 29.9 million were 

people 18 to 64 years of age, and 

5.1 million were people who were 

65 years and older. In 2010, the 

corresponding numbers for all 

age groups increased to 20.3 million, 48.6 million, and 8.5 million, 

respectively. 

Among all children in the United 

States, the proportion of those living in poverty areas was 27.9 percent in 2010, up from 20.3 percent 

in 2000. Similarly, the proportions 

of adults 18 to 64 years of age and 

those who were 65 years and older 

increased from 17.7 percent and 

15.4 percent, respectively, in 2000 

to 25.7 percent and 21.6 percent, 

respectively, in 2010.

The number and percentage of 

people in poverty living in poverty 

areas also increased across all age 

groups between 2000 and 2010 

(see Table 2b). In 2010, more than 

one-third (8.8 million) of the 24.0 

million people in poverty living in 

poverty areas were children. During 

the same time, more than half of 

children (58.3 percent) and people 

18 to 64 years of age (52.5 percent) who were in poverty lived in 

poverty areas, compared with 40.8 

percent of poor people 65 years 

and older. 

Race and Hispanic Origin

Table 2a also shows the proportion of people in each race group 

and Hispanics living in poverty 

areas in 2000 and 2010. In 2000, 

about 46.3 percent of Blacks, 40.6 

percent of American Indians and 

Alaska Natives, and 44.2 percent 

of those classified as Some Other 

Race lived in poverty areas, while 

11.3 percent of Whites and 16.9 

percent of Asians lived in such 

areas. In 2010, these proportions increased to 50.4 percent, 

47.8 percent, and 48.3 percent 

for Blacks, American Indians and 

Alaska Natives, and those in “Some 

Other Race,” respectively. For 

Whites and Asians, the proportion 

of people living in poverty areas 

increased to 20.3 percent and 18.7 

percent, respectively.12 Between 

2000 and 2010, the percentage 

point increase in the proportion of 

people living in poverty areas was 

the largest for Whites and smallest 

for Asians.

Figure 8 shows the composition 

of the total U.S. population and 

the population living in poverty 

areas by selected race and Hispanic 

origin for 2010. This figure clearly 

indicates that Blacks had considerably larger shares of people living 

in poverty areas, compared with 

their share of the total population. 

Hispanics, who may be any race, 

made up about 16.4 percent of 

the total population in 2010, but 

accounted for 28.2 percent of those 

living in poverty areas. 

In both 2000 and 2010, more 

than 50 percent of Blacks, 

American Indians and Alaska 

Natives, and people of Some Other 

Race who were in poverty lived 

in poverty areas (see Table 2b). 

For Hispanics, who can be any 

race, the percentage of those who 

were in poverty living in poverty 

areas increased from 60.3 percent 

in 2000 to 65.8 percent in 2010. 

Among all races, the proportion of 

Whites who were in poverty living 

in poverty areas experienced the 

largest percentage point increase 

(14.3 percentage points). 

12 Federal surveys now give respondents 

the option of reporting more than one race. 

Therefore, two basic ways of defining a race 

group are possible. A group such as Asian 

may be defined as those who reported Asian 

and no other race (the race-alone or singlerace concept) or as those who reported Asian 

regardless of whether they also reported 

another race (the “race-alone-or-in-combination” concept). The body of this report (text, 

figures, and tables) shows data using the 

first approach (race alone). Use of the singlerace population does not imply that it is the 

preferred method of presenting or analyzing 

data. The Census Bureau uses a variety of 

approaches. 
U.S. Census Bureau 13

People in Poverty

According to the 2010 ACS, 44.9 

million people, representing 14.9 

percent of the population, had 

income below the poverty level, an 

increase from 33.9 million or 12.4 

percent in 2000.13 Of the 49.5 million people living in poverty areas 

in 2000, about 15.0 million were in 

poverty. In 2010, the total number 

of people living in poverty areas 

reached 77.4 million. Of these, 

24.0 million had incomes below the 

poverty level. 

Educational Attainment 

During the period between 2000 

and 2010, the proportion of people 

living in poverty areas increased 

across all educational levels. In 

2000, there were 28.7 million 

people who were 25 years or older 

living in poverty areas. Of these, 

about 18.8 million or 65.6 percent 

had less than a high school education or had a high school diploma, 

while 3.6 million had a bachelor’s 

degree or higher. In 2010, the number of people with a high school 

diploma or less living in poverty 

areas increased to 27.0 million. 

The number of people who had an 

associate degree or higher living in 

poverty areas more than doubled 

over the decade. 

The largest percentage point 

increases in the proportion of 

people living in poverty areas were 

seen among people with less than 

a high school education and those 

with a high school diploma.

Table 2b shows that, in 2010, more 

than half (59.6 percent) of people 

with less than a high school education who were in poverty lived in 

poverty areas. 

13 According to Census 2000 sample 

survey data of the total U.S. population, the 

percentage of people in poverty was 12.4 

percent. 

Employment Status

The number and proportion of all 

civilian labor force participants who 

were 16 years and older and living 

in poverty areas increased from 

20.8 million (15.3 percent) in 2000 

to 36.5 million (23.5 percent) in 

2010 (see Table 2a). Both employed 

and unemployed people experienced increases in the number and 

proportion of people living in poverty areas during this time. Among 

unemployed people, 34.5 percent 

lived in poverty areas in 2010, an 

increase from 31.2 percent in 2000. 

However, between 2000 and 2010, 

people who were employed saw 

the largest increase (8.0 percentage 

points) in the proportion of people 

living in poverty areas. 

In 2010, 7.2 million civilian labor 

force participants in poverty lived 

in poverty areas (see Table 2b). Of 

these, 4.9 million were employed, 

while 2.3 million were unemployed. 

Between 2000 and 2010, the proportion of poor employed people 

living in poverty areas increased by 

12.0 percentage points. 

Marital Status

Of the total population 15 years or 

older, about 60.4 million or 25.0 

percent lived in poverty areas in 

2010, an increase from 37.3 million 

or 17.4 percent in 2000 (see Table 

2a). The number and proportion of 

people living in poverty areas varied by marital status. In 2000, married people composed the largest 

group living in poverty areas with 

15.4 million, while in 2010, people 

who were never married became 

the largest group to live in poverty 

areas (24.4 million). 

The proportion of people living in 

poverty areas increased between 

2000 and 2010 across all marital groups. During this time, the 

proportion of people who were 

divorced and living in poverty 

areas increased by 9.0 percentage 

points, the largest percentage point 

increase among all marital groups. 

In 2010, among people who were 

15 years and over and who were 

in poverty, about 16.4 million lived 

in poverty areas (see Table 2b). Of 

these, more than half were people 

who were never married. Among 

the various marital groups who 

were in poverty, people who were 

separated and those who had never 

married had the largest proportions 

living in poverty areas. 

Place of Residence by 

Metropolitan Areas

Over the decade between 2000 and 

2010, there was a shift in the place 

of residence of persons living in 

poverty areas from central cities to 

the suburbs. Of the nearly 50 million people living in poverty areas in 

2000, more than half (29.0 million) 

resided in the central cities, while 

9.9 million lived in the remainder 

of metropolitan areas (suburban 

areas) and 10.7 million lived outside 

of metropolitan areas, respectively 

(see Table 2a).14 In 2010, about 

77.4 million people lived in poverty 

areas—39.5 million or 51.1 percent 

in central cities, 22.1 million or 28.6 

percent in suburban areas, and 15.8 

million or 20.4 percent outside of 

metropolitan areas. 

In 2010, the proportion of central 

city residents living in poverty 

areas was the largest (40.3 percent) 

compared with the proportion for 

people living in the suburbs (14.3 

percent) and outside of metropolitan areas (32.5 percent). Between 

2000 and 2010, people living in 

areas outside of metropolitan areas 

saw the largest percentage point 

increase in the proportion of people 

living in poverty areas. 

More than half of those who were 

in poverty living in poverty areas 

14 In this report, the term “suburban areas” 

refers to the areas in metropolitan areas that 

are outside central cities.
14 U.S. Census Bureau Table 2a. Number and Percentage of People, Families, and Households Living in Poverty Areas by Selected 

2000 and 20101—Con. Characteristics 2010 2000 

Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Num

PEOPLE United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77,415,102 68,299 25.7 0.1 49,488,516 30,291 18.1 0.1 *27,926

Age Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77,415,102 68,299 25.7 0.1 49,488,516 30,291 18.1 0.1 *27,926

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,347,295 26,633 27.9 0.1 14,418,378 13,714 20.3 0.1 *5,92818 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48,571,697 49,756 25.7 0.1 29,949,157 20,093 17.7 0.1 *18,62265 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,496,110 12,299 21.6 0.1 5,120,981 8,424 15.4 0.1 *3,375

Educational Attainment Population 25 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47,495,562 52,283 23.7 0.1 28,730,803 17,634 16.1 0.1 *18,764

Less than high school, no diploma . . . . . . . . . . 12,088,854 39,937 43.2 0.1 10,709,893 9,975 31.3 0.1 *1,378High school, diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,931,021 28,571 26.5 0.1 8,139,146 9,622 15.9 0.1 *6,791Some college/no degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,724,830 29,038 22.7 0.1 4,972,579 7,644 13.1 0.1 *4,752Associate degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,990,468 17,052 19.2 0.1 1,260,111 3,894 11.0 0.1 *1,730Bachelor’s degree or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,760,389 54,798 13.4 0.1 3,649,074 6,730 8.3 0.1 *4,111

Race Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77,415,102 68,299 25.7 0.1 49,488,516 30,291 18.1 0.1 *27,926

White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45,473,577 53,901 20.3 0.1 23,207,986 28,379 11.3 0.1 *22,265

White, not Hispanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31,961,033 35,365 16.6 0.1 17,109,277 24,672 9.0 0.1 *14,851

Black alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18,700,825 35,107 50.4 0.1 15,142,803 17,834 46.3 0.1 *3,558American Indian and Alaska Native alone . . . . . 1,168,420 9,699 47.8 0.3 960,354 4,724 40.6 0.2 *208Asian alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,731,778 15,858 18.7 0.1 1,682,054 7,395 16.9 0.1 *1,049Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander alone . . . . 137,089 4,538 27.5 0.9 83,108 1,584 22.8 0.4 *53Some Other Race alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,002,621 40,798 48.3 0.2 6,679,813 12,069 44.2 0.1 *322

Two or More Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,200,792 28,816 27.4 0.2 1,732,398 7,155 24.4 0.1 *468

Hispanic (any race) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21,819,064 39,471 44.1 0.1 13,920,179 18,010 40.4 0.1 *7,898

Poverty Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77,415,102 68,299 25.7 0.1 49,488,516 30,291 18.1 0.1 *27,926

Not in poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53,432,354 178,249 20.8 0.1 34,441,908 25,971 14.4 0.1 *18,990In poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,982,748 137,146 53.5 0.1 15,046,608 13,833 44.4 0.1 *8,936

Employment Status Civilian population in labor force 16 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36,511,982 77,994 23.5 0.1 20,803,768 15,357 15.3 0.1 *15,708

Employed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31,545,563 71,841 22.3 0.1 18,465,213 14,630 14.3 0.1 *13,080

Unemployed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,966,419 18,542 34.5 0.1 2,338,555 4,667 31.2 0.1 *2,627

See footnotes at end of table.
U.S. Census Bureau 15 Table 2a. Number and Percentage of People, Families, and Households Living in Poverty Areas by Selected 

2000 and 20101—Con. Characteristics 2010 2000 

Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Num

Marital Status Population 15 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60,409,791 59,794 25 .0 0 .2 37,314,720 18,203 17 .4 0 .1 *23,095

Married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,073,011 113,221 19 .0 0 .1 15,378,691 12,105 13 .1 0 .1 *7,694

Widowed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,721,248 14,175 26 .3 0 .1 2,714,628 4,894 19 .5 0 .1 *1,006

Divorced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,152,831 24,669 27 .5 0 .1 3,913,847 5,914 18 .5 0 .1 *3,238

Separated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,093,315 14,607 39 .9 0 .2 1,509,616 3,335 32 .8 0 .1 *583

Never married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Metro Status of Current Residence . . . . . 24,369,386 58,239 32 .8 0 .1 13,797,938 10,713 24 .1 0 .1 *10,571

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77,415,102 68,299 25 .7 0 .1 49,488,516 30,291 18 .1 0 .1 *27,926

Central city of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39,520,766 44,898 40 .3 0 .1 28,951,349 22,338 35 .0 0 .1 *10,569

Remainder of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,135,044 32,914 14 .3 0 .1 9,880,397 15,596 7 .2 0 .1 *12,254

Outside of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . FAMILIES Family Type . . . . . 15,759,292 19,358 32 .5 0 .1 10,656,770 15,041 20 .0 0 .1 *5,102

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,596,568 72,057 23 .0 0 .2 11,550,594 11,241 16 .0 0 .2 *6,045

Married-couple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,175,782 67,085 18 .0 0 .1 6,735,180 8,948 12 .1 0 .1 *3,440

Male householder, no wife present . . . . . . . . . . . 1,735,994 10,354 32 .5 0 .2 1,029,358 3,255 23 .9 0 .1 *706

Female householder, no husband present Presence of Related Children . . . . . 5,684,792 17,937 38 .4 0 .2 3,786,056 5,976 30 .3 0 .1 *1,898

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,596,568 72,057 23 .0 0 .2 11,550,594 11,241 16 .0 0 .2 *6,045

With related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,824,042 59,812 26 .0 0 .1 7,111,169 9,728 18 .7 0 .1 *2,712

No related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Family Income . . . . . 7,772,526 19,638 20 .1 0 .1 4,439,425 7,954 13 .0 0 .1 *3,333

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,596,568 72,057 23 .0 0 .2 11,550,594 11,241 16 .0 0 .2 *6,045

Under $10,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,884,710 9,220 53 .4 0 .2 1,849,234 4,099 44 .5 0 .2 *35

$10,000 to $29,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,120,462 15,255 42 .4 0 .1 4,186,122 7,043 27 .6 0 .2 *934

$30,000 to $49,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,867,596 21,160 28 .5 0 .1 2,712,077 6,101 16 .2 0 .1 *1,155

$50,000 to $99,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,806,849 35,746 18 .6 0 .1 2,280,428 5,826 9 .1 0 .1 *2,526

$100,000 or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HOUSEHOLDS Tenure . . . . . 1,916,951 21,779 8 .9 0 .1 522,733 2,855 4 .7 0 .1 *1,394

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28,795,693 88,675 25 .0 0 .1 18,045,664 13,901 17 .1 0 .1 *10,750

Owned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13,558,255 95,968 18 .0 0 .1 7,946,587 9,761 11 .4 0 .1 *5,611

Rented . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15,237,438 19,423 38 .3 0 .1 10,099,077 9,897 28 .3 0 .1 *5,138

* Change is statistically different from zero at the 90 percent confidence level . 1 Data from 2000 were obtained from Census 2000 sample survey, while the data for 2010 were obtained from 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey . 2 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are not related 

tional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 3 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in relation to ththe estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval . Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding .

Source: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .
16 U.S. Census Bureau Table 2b. Number and Percentage of People, Families, and Households in Poverty Living in Poverty Areas b

Characteristics: 2000 and 20101—Con. Characteristics 2010 2000 

Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Num

PEOPLE United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Age 23,982,748 137,146 53 .5 0 .4 15,046,608 11,705 44 .4 0 .1 *8,936

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,982,748 137,146 53 .5 0 .4 15,046,608 11,705 44 .4 0 .1 *8,936

 Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,848,377 76,020 58 .3 0 .2 5,746,884 6,932 48 .9 0 .1 *3,101

 18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13,624,605 64,210 52 .5 0 .1 8,221,251 8,714 43 .6 0 .0 *5,403

 65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Educational Attainment 1,509,766 7,987 40 .8 0 .1 1,078,473 3,444 32 .8 0 .1 *431

 Population 25 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,094,708 51,314 48 .7 0 .5 6,801,430 7,438 39 .9 0 .1 *4,293

 Less than high school, no diploma . . . . . . . . . . 4,417,201 29,417 59 .6 0 .2 3,657,761 5,030 48 .9 0 .1 *759

 High school, diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,492,953 20,811 47 .2 0 .2 1,779,049 3,931 35 .8 0 .1 *1,713

 Some college/no degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,969,244 11,379 44 .3 0 .2 830,825 2,750 32 .7 0 .1 *1,138

 Associate’s degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458,252 5,423 39 .9 0 .4 173,344 1,284 29 .7 0 .2 *284

 Bachelor’s degree or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Race 757,058 6,461 31 .8 0 .2 360,451 1,920 24 .4 0 .1 *396

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,982,748 137,146 53 .5 0 .4 15,046,608 11,705 44 .4 0 .1 *8,936

 White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,253,766 75,098 45 .2 0 .3 5,813,519 12,538 30 .8 0 .1 *6,440

 White, not Hispanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,478,730 64,842 37 .8 0 .1 3,803,971 10,585 24 .7 0 .1 *3,674

 Black alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,069,531 37,029 71 .9 0 .2 5,455,572 8,394 67 .0 0 .1 *1,613

 American Indian and Alaska Native alone . . . . . 444,906 6,409 65 .5 0 .6 364,097 2,389 59 .9 0 .4 *80

 Asian alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800,885 10,466 45 .4 0 .5 527,042 3,460 41 .9 0 .3 *273

 Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander alone . . . . 47,959 2,995 51 .5 2 .6 26,846 783 41 .6 1 .2 *21

 Some Other Race alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,569,061 28,775 67 .9 0 .4 2,283,812 5,831 61 .9 0 .2 *285

 Two or More Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 796,640 10,723 51 .0 0 .4 575,720 3,529 44 .7 0 .3 *220

 Hispanic (any race) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Employment Status Civilian population in labor force 16 years 7,840,531 52,633 65 .8 0 .2 4,699,186 8,545 60 .3 0 .1 *3,141

 and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,242,000 27,805 51 .3 0 .4 3,985,916 9,285 40 .9 0 .1 *3,256

 Employed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,940,981 22,125 50 .5 0 .2 2,964,561 8,167 38 .5 0 .1 *1,976

 Unemployed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marital Status 2,301,019 13,183 52 .6 0 .3 1,021,355 4,330 49 .9 0 .1 *1,279

 Population 15 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16,376,823 73,543 51 .3 0 .5 10,086,264 7,993 42 .2 0 .1 *6,290

 Married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,589,212 20,696 48 .3 0 .2 2,663,149 4,198 39 .6 0 .1 *926

 Widowed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 948,852 6,879 43 .1 0 .2 814,229 2,405 35 .2 0 .1 *134

 Divorced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,050,592 12,807 42 .9 0 .2 1,125,752 2,867 33 .4 0 .1 *924

 Separated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 829,950 8,704 55 .6 0 .3 591,630 1,819 49 .0 0 .2 *238

 Never married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . See footnotes at end of table . 8,958,217 48,835 55 .9 0 .1 4,891,504 5,301 47 .6 0 .1 *4,066
U.S. Census Bureau 17 Table 2b. Number and Percentage of People, Families, and Households in Poverty Living in Poverty Areas b

Characteristics: 2000 and 20101—Con. Characteristics 2010 2000 

Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Number2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent 2 Margin of error3 (±) Num

Metro Status of Current Residence Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Central city of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . Remainder of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . Outside of Metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . FAMILIES Family Type Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Married-couple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Male householder, no wife present . . . . . . Female householder, no husband present Presence of Related Children Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . With related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Family Income Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Under $10,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10,000 to $29,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30,000 to $49,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50,000 to $99,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $100,000 or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HOUSEHOLDS Tenure Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Owned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rented . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,982,748 13,230,145 6,286,967 4,465,636 4,476,335 1,443,738 467,971 2,564,626 4,476,335 3,635,545 840,790 4,476,335 1,884,710 2,512,586 79,009 30 Z 8,034,010 1,877,642 6,156,368 137,146 62,954 53,553 43,247 15,959 8,263 6,531 11,236 15,959 13,935 5,811 15,959 9,220 11,639 2,229 27 Z 18,180 10,506 18,382 53 .5 69 .1 36 .5 52 .8 53 .5 47 .6 53 .6 57 .5 53 .5 55 .9 45 .1 53 .5 53 .4 53 .4 61 .4 46 .9 Z 50 .5 36 .7 57 .0 0 .4 0 .1 0 .2 0 .2 0 .6 0 .2 0 .5 0 .2 0 .6 0 .1 0 .2 0 .6 0 .2 0 .2 1 .0 28 .4 Z 0 .2 0 .2 0 .1 15,046,608 9,279,465 2,796,388 2,970,755 2,944,715 1,039,622 255,411 1,649,682 2,944,715 2,418,925 525,790 2,944,715 1,849,234 1,086,398 9,083 Z Z 5,119,559 1,264,630 3,854,929 11,705 9,446 7,495 6,986 8,466 5,306 2,513 6,028 5,174 4,585 2,349 5,174 4,099 3,146 247Z Z 6,388 3,487 5,224 44 .4 63 .7 24 .2 38 .1 44 .5 38 .2 43 .6 49 .8 44 .5 46 .9 35 .9 44 .5 44 .5 44 .3 58 .9 Z Z 41 .1 28 .9 47 .7 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 0 .2 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 0 .2 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 1 .6 Z Z 0 .1 0 .1 0 .1 *8,936

*3,950*3,490*1,494*1,531

*404*212*914

*1,531*1,216

*315

*1,531

*35

*1,426

*69

*2,914

*613

*2,301

Z Represents zero . * Change is statistically different from zero at the 90 percent confidence level . 1 Data from 2000 were obtained from Census 2000 sample survey, while the data for 2010 were obtained from 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey . 2 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are not related 

institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 3 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in relation to ththe estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval . Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding . Source: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .
18 U.S. Census Bureau

Figure 7. 

Percentage Point Change in Proportion of People Living in Poverty Areas by 

Selected Characteristics: 2000 to 2010

(Data based on sample. For information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error, and 

definitions, see www.census.gov/acs/www/)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000 and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data. 

0 3 6 9 12 15

Owned

Rented

100,000 or higher

Under 10,000

50,000 to 99,999

30,000 to 49,999

10,000 to 29,999

No related children

With related children

Married couple

Female householder, no spouse present

Male householder, no spouse present

Central city of metropolitan area

Remainder of metropolitan area

Outside of metropolitan area

Married

Widowed

Separated

Never married

Divorced

Unemployed

Employed

Not in poverty

In poverty

Asian alone

Two or More Races

Hispanic (any race)

Some Other Race alone

Black alone

Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander alone (NHPI)

American Indian and Alaska Native alone (AIAN)

White, not Hispanic

White alone

Bachelor's degree or higher

Associate’s degree

Some college/no degree

High school, diploma

Less than high school, no diploma

65 years and over

Under 18 years

18 to 64 years

Northeast

West

South

Midwest

United States

Percent
U.S. Census Bureau 19

resided in central cities in 2010. 

However, between 2000 and 2010, 

the suburbs and areas outside 

of metropolitan areas saw larger 

increases in the proportion of poor 

people living in poverty areas (see 

Table 2b). 

Family Households 

Of all family households in 2000, 

11.6 million or 16.0 percent lived 

in poverty areas (see Table 2a).15 In 

2010, this figure changed to 17.6 

million or 23.0 percent of the total 

family households. In both 2000 

and 2010, the number and percentage of people living in poverty 

areas varied by type of family. In 

2000, more than half of the 11.6 

million families living in poverty 

areas were married-couple families 

(6.7 million), while 1.0 million were 

male-householder, no wife present, 

family households, and 3.8 million 

were female-householder, no husband present, family households. 

In 2010, the number of families 

living in poverty areas increased 

for all types of families. Among all 

female householders, no husband 

present, family households, the 

proportion living in poverty areas 

grew from 30.3 percent in 2000 to 

38.4 percent in 2010, the largest 

proportion among all types of family households. 

In 2000, 2.9 million families with 

incomes below the poverty level 

lived in poverty areas, while in 2010 

the number increased to 4.5 million 

(see Table 2b). Of these, more than 

15 Family households are defined as 

households with more than one person in 

which someone in the household is related by 

blood, marriage, or adoption to the household reference person.

half were female-householder, no 

husband present, family households. However, between 2000 and 

2010, male-householder, no wife 

present, family households saw the 

largest percentage point increase in 

the proportion of poor families living in poverty areas.

Presence of Related Children

In both 2000 and 2010, a larger 

number of families with related 

children lived in poverty areas than 

families without related children 

(see Table 2a). There were about 

7.1 million family households with 

related children and 4.4 million 

families without related children 

living in poverty areas in 2000. In 

2010, these numbers increased 

to 9.8 million and 7.8 million, 

respectively. 

In 2010, about one-quarter of all 

families with related children (26.0 

percent) lived in poverty areas, 

while about 20.1 percent of the 

families without related children 

lived in such areas.

Table 2b shows that families with 

related children composed over 80 

percent of the total poor families 

living in poverty areas, in both 

years.16 In 2010, more than half of 

poor families with related children 

lived in poverty areas.

Family Income

The number of families who lived 

in poverty areas increased from 

11.6 million in 2000 to 17.6 

16 In 2000, of the total 2.9 million families 

in poverty, 2.4 million were families with 

related children. In 2010, of the total 4.5 million families in poverty, families with related 

children comprised 3.6 million.

million in 2010 (see Table 2a). Of 

these, families with income below 

$30,000 comprised 6.0 million or 

52.3 percent in 2000. In 2010, the 

number of families in this income 

group living in poverty areas 

increased to 7.0 million, while its 

share declined to 39.8 percent, as 

more families with higher incomes 

lived in poverty areas.17

Between 2000 and 2010, the proportion of family households living 

in poverty areas increased across 

all income groups. In 2010, more 

than half of families with a family 

income less than $10,000 lived in 

poverty areas, an increase from 

44.5 percent in 2000. During this 

period, the percentage of families 

with incomes between $10,000 

and $30,000 living in poverty 

areas increased by 14.8 percentage points. The proportion of 

families with incomes of $30,000 

to $50,000 living in poverty areas 

increased by 12.3 percentage 

points during the same time.

More than half of families in poverty lived in poverty areas in 2010 

(see Table 2b). In 2000, families 

with incomes between $10,000 and 

$30,000 comprised about 36.9 percent of all families in poverty living 

in poverty areas, while in 2010, 

this proportion increased to represent more than half (56.1 percent) 

of families in this income group.

Tenure

The total number of occupied 

households living in poverty areas 

increased by over 10 million—

from about 18.0 million in 2000 

17 The 2008–2012 family income was 

inflation-adjusted to 2012 dollars.
20 U.S. Census Bureau

to 28.8 million in 2010 (see Table 

2a). The number of households in 

poverty areas increased for both 

owned and rented households, 

but more renter households than 

owner-occupied households were 

found in poverty areas for both 

years. Between 2000 and 2010, the 

proportion of renter households 

in poverty areas grew by 10.0 percentage points to 38.3 percent. 

As Table 2b shows, the number of 

poor households living in poverty 

areas increased from 5.1 million 

in 2000 to 8.0 million in 2010. Of 

these, households that paid rent 

comprised about three-quarters 

of all poor households in poverty 

areas.18

18 In 2000, of the total 5.1 million households in poverty living in poverty areas, 3.9 

million were renters. In 2010, of the total 

8.0 million households in poverty living in 

poverty areas, 6.2 million were renters.

SOURCE AND ACCURACY 

The data presented in this report 

are based on the ACS sample 

interviewed from January 1, 2008, 

through December 31, 2012, and 

the sample interviewed in 2000 

from the Census 2000 sample. The 

estimates based on these samples 

describe the actual average values 

of person, household, and housing 

unit characteristics over this period 

of collection. Sampling error is the 

uncertainty between an estimate 

based on a sample and the corresponding value that would be 

obtained if the estimate were based 

on the entire population (as from 

a census). Measures of sampling 

Figure 8. 

Composition of Total Population and People Living in Poverty Areas by Selected 

Race and Hispanic Origin: 2010

(In percent. Data based on sample. For information on confidentiality protection, sampling error, nonsampling error, 

and definitions, see www.census.gov/acs/www/)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data. 

People living in

poverty areas

Total population

People living in

poverty areas

Total population

White alone Black alone Other

Not Hispanic Hispanic

74.4

58.7

12.3

24.2 17.1

13.3

83.6 16.4

71.8 28.2

WHAT IS THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY? 

The American Community Survey (ACS) is a nationwide survey 

designed to provide communities with reliable and timely demographic, social, economic, and housing data for the nation, states, 

congressional districts, counties, places, and other localities every 

year. It has an annual sample size of about 3 million addresses across 

the United States and Puerto Rico and includes both housing units 

and group quarters (e.g., nursing facilities and prisons). The ACS is 

conducted in every county throughout the nation, and every municipio in Puerto Rico, where it is called the Puerto Rico Community 

Survey. Beginning in 2006, ACS data for 2005 were released for geographic areas with populations of 65,000 and greater. 

For information on the ACS sample design and other topics, visit 

<www.census.gov/acs/www>.
U.S. Census Bureau 21

error are provided in the form of 

margins of error for all estimates 

included in this report. All comparative statements in this report 

have undergone statistical testing, 

and comparisons are significant at 

the 90 percent level unless otherwise noted. In addition to sampling 

error, nonsampling error may be 

introduced during any of the operations used to collect and process 

survey data such as editing, reviewing, or keying data from questionnaires. For more information on 

sampling and estimation methods, 

confidentiality protection, and sampling and nonsampling error, please 

see the 2012 ACS Accuracy of the 

Data document located at 

<www.census.gov/acs/www

/Downloads/data_documentation

/Accuracy/MultiyearACSAccuracy

ofData2012.pdf>, and the Accuracy 

of the Data document for Census 

2000 sample data located at 

<www.census.gov/prod

/cen2000/doc/sf3.pdf>.

NOTES:

The Census Bureau also publishes 

poverty estimates based on the 

Current Population Survey’s Annual 

Social and Economic Supplement 

(CPS ASEC). Following the standard specified by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) in 

Statistical Policy Directive 14, data 

from the CPS ASEC are used to estimate the official national poverty 

rate, which can be found in the 

report Income, Poverty, and Health 

Insurance Coverage in the United 

States: 2012, available at 

<www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs

/p60-245.pdf>.

For information on poverty estimates from the ACS and how they 

differ from those based on the CPS 

ASEC, see “Fact Sheet—Differences 

Between CPS ASEC and ACS” at 

<www.census.gov/hhes/www

/poverty/about/datasources

/factsheet.html>. 
22 U.S. Census Bureau Appendix Table 1. Distribution of People in Census Tracts by Poverty Levels of Census Tracts by Region and by State

Geography 2000 2010 Total2 Category I (less than 14.9 percent) Category II (14.9–19.9 percent) Category III (20.0–39.9 percent) Category IV (40.0 percent or more) Total2 Category I (less than14.9 percent) Catego

(14.9–

perce

Number Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Number Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 M

United States Total . . . . . . . 273,882,232 12,953 70.7 0.1 11.2 0.1 15.4 0.1 2.6 0.1 301,333,410 13,789 60.9 0.1 13.5 

In poverty . . . . . . . . . 33,899,812 26,062 39.9 0.1 15.7 0.1 34.1 0.1 10.3 0.1 44,852,527 269,119 30.9 0.1 15.6 Regions Northeast . . . . . . . . . 52,039,565 31,046 75.3 0.1 8.2 0.1 13.3 0.1 3.3 0.1 53,774,415 3,567 70.9 0.1 9.2 Midwest . . . . . . . . . . 62,613,918 33,233 80.6 0.1 7.7 0.1 9.9 0.1 1.8 0.1 65,167,080 5,103 65.4 0.1 13.0 South . . . . . . . . . . . . 97,437,335 37,886 63.8 0.1 14.5 0.1 18.9 0.1 2.9 0.1 111,779,304 7,271 53.4 0.1 15.8 West . . . . . . . . . . . . 61,791,414 33,078 67.7 0.1 12.3 0.1 17.4 0.1 2.5 0.1 70,612,611 5,215 60.8 0.1 13.3 States Alabama . . . . . . . . . 4,334,919 9,877 55.6 0.1 18.8 0.1 21.6 0.1 4.0 0.1 4,662,094 995 45.4 0.1 18.6 Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . 612,961 3,452 85.3 0.2 6.5 0.1 8.2 0.2 0.0 0.0 694,795 433 84.3 0.3 7.9 Arizona . . . . . . . . . . 5,021,238 13,066 65.3 0.1 10.7 0.1 20.2 0.1 3.8 0.1 6,267,024 1,693 54.5 0.1 12.2 Arkansas . . . . . . . . . 2,600,117 7,674 53.0 0.1 24.0 0.1 21.1 0.1 1.9 0.1 2,833,046 923 42.4 0.2 18.9 California . . . . . . . . . 33,100,044 31,748 62.5 0.1 12.8 0.1 21.4 0.1 3.4 0.1 36,575,460 3,416 59.1 0.1 13.2 Colorado . . . . . . . . . 4,202,140 9,727 82.8 0.1 7.7 0.1 9.0 0.1 0.5 0.1 4,927,283 1,149 67.6 0.1 11.0 Connecticut . . . . . . . 3,300,416 9,963 86.6 0.1 3.5 0.1 8.7 0.1 1.2 0.1 3,463,192 812 78.2 0.1 7.7 Delaware . . . . . . . . . 759,117 4,801 83.2 0.2 10.9 0.2 4.2 0.1 1.7 0.1 874,954 550 74.4 0.3 13.1 District of Columbia . 541,657 4,057 38.2 0.4 20.5 0.3 31.1 0.3 10.2 0.2 572,108 278 51.2 0.4 14.3 Florida . . . . . . . . . . . 15,605,367 22,577 71.0 0.1 12.6 0.1 14.2 0.1 2.2 0.1 18,479,273 2,372 58.1 0.1 15.3 Georgia . . . . . . . . . . 7,959,649 16,361 68.3 0.1 11.9 0.1 16.9 0.1 2.9 0.1 9,448,393 1,950 49.5 0.1 16.1 Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . 1,178,795 5,181 75.8 0.2 11.2 0.1 12.3 0.1 0.7 0.1 1,326,949 660 74.5 0.3 13.6 Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,263,205 5,362 75.2 0.2 18.6 0.2 5.4 0.1 0.8 0.1 1,537,058 691 58.1 0.2 23.3 Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,095,961 16,259 77.8 0.1 7.6 0.1 12.0 0.1 2.5 0.1 12,522,726 1,704 67.3 0.1 10.9 Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . 5,894,295 13,251 83.0 0.1 7.7 0.1 8.1 0.1 1.2 0.1 6,287,582 1,567 61.7 0.1 15.2 Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,824,435 7,380 89.6 0.1 5.7 0.1 3.9 0.1 0.7 0.1 2,948,498 635 73.6 0.1 12.5 Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . 2,605,429 7,091 81.1 0.1 9.8 0.1 8.2 0.1 0.9 0.1 2,767,281 1,042 66.9 0.1 13.4 Kentucky . . . . . . . . . 3,927,047 9,408 54.6 0.1 15.5 0.1 27.6 0.1 2.3 0.1 4,209,861 1,319 42.5 0.1 18.2 Louisiana . . . . . . . . . 4,334,094 9,876 42.5 0.1 16.4 0.1 33.8 0.1 7.2 0.1 4,400,761 1,216 46.1 0.2 16.4 Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,240,893 4,906 78.0 0.2 15.0 0.1 6.9 0.1 0.2 0.1 1,293,465 533 66.1 0.2 16.4 

See footnotes at end of table.
U.S. Census Bureau 23 Appendix Table 1. Distribution of People in Census Tracts by Poverty Levels of Census Tracts by Region and by State

Geography 2000 2010 Total2 Category I (less than 14 .9 percent) Category II (14 .9–19 .9 percent) Category III (20 .0–39 .9 percent) Category IV (40 .0 percent or more) Total2 Category I (less than14 .9 percent) Catego

(14 .9–

perce

Number Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Number Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 Margin of error3 (±) Per- cent2 M

States—Con . Maryland . . . . . . . . . . 5,164,376 12,420 85 .9 0 .1 5 .8 0 .1 6 .9 0 .1 1 .4 0 .1 5,645,390 1,207 81 .0 0 .1 8 .2 

Massachusetts . . . . . . 6,138,444 13,516 81 .5 0 .1 6 .2 0 .1 11 .0 0 .1 1 .3 0 .1 6,333,378 987 76 .7 0 .1 7 .2 

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . 9,700,622 13,502 80 .1 0 .1 6 .0 0 .1 11 .7 0 .1 2 .2 0 .1 9,676,703 1,392 57 .9 0 .1 14 .9 

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . 4,794,144 9,580 88 .8 0 .1 4 .9 0 .1 5 .2 0 .1 1 .2 0 .1 5,191,097 878 77 .8 0 .1 9 .0 

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . 2,750,677 7,891 39 .3 0 .1 19 .6 0 .1 35 .8 0 .1 5 .3 0 .1 2,872,106 1,089 31 .3 0 .2 20 .2 

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . 5,433,293 10,186 71 .8 0 .1 13 .2 0 .1 13 .3 0 .1 1 .6 0 .1 5,802,726 1,777 58 .2 0 .1 16 .9 

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . 878,789 4,131 65 .0 0 .2 14 .5 0 .2 18 .5 0 .2 2 .1 0 .1 966,486 528 60 .5 0 .2 15 .5 

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . 1,660,527 5,671 84 .9 0 .1 7 .5 0 .1 7 .2 0 .1 0 .3 0 .1 1,772,893 799 71 .4 0 .1 11 .7 

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . 1,962,948 8,216 76 .7 0 .2 12 .4 0 .1 10 .7 0 .1 0 .2 0 .1 2,665,094 978 62 .4 0 .2 13 .8 

New Hampshire . . . . . 1,199,322 4,823 95 .5 0 .1 2 .9 0 .1 1 .1 0 .1 0 .5 0 .1 1,277,667 434 86 .2 0 .2 7 .1 

New Jersey . . . . . . . . 8,232,588 15,591 83 .0 0 .1 6 .8 0 .1 8 .7 0 .1 1 .6 0 .1 8,619,763 1,205 79 .0 0 .1 6 .9 

New Mexico . . . . . . . . 1,783,907 6,366 41 .8 0 .2 21 .4 0 .1 32 .5 0 .2 4 .4 0 .1 2,013,777 902 41 .0 0 .2 16 .0 

New York . . . . . . . . . . 18,449,899 24,413 63 .7 0 .1 10 .6 0 .1 19 .7 0 .1 5 .9 0 .1 18,885,925 2,163 62 .5 0 .1 10 .9 

North Carolina . . . . . . 7,805,328 13,168 70 .8 0 .1 15 .3 0 .1 12 .9 0 .1 1 .1 0 .1 9,289,467 1,603 49 .3 0 .1 18 .8 

North Dakota . . . . . . . 619,197 2,602 76 .4 0 .2 13 .6 0 .1 9 .6 0 .1 0 .5 0 .1 652,525 354 78 .2 0 .2 10 .3 

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,046,987 14,372 78 .2 0 .1 8 .3 0 .1 11 .4 0 .1 2 .1 0 .1 11,222,568 1,979 61 .1 0 .1 14 .2 

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . 3,336,224 8,681 55 .1 0 .1 20 .7 0 .1 22 .7 0 .1 1 .5 0 .1 3,634,666 893 50 .2 0 .1 18 .4 

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,347,667 8,696 75 .1 0 .1 14 .7 0 .1 9 .6 0 .1 0 .6 0 .1 3,762,697 1,244 56 .2 0 .2 17 .6 

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . 11,879,950 14,880 78 .9 0 .1 7 .5 0 .1 10 .9 0 .1 2 .7 0 .1 12,289,177 1,974 71 .7 0 .1 9 .1 

Rhode Island . . . . . . . 1,010,000 5,535 72 .1 0 .2 7 .4 0 .1 17 .6 0 .2 3 .0 0 .1 1,011,137 430 70 .0 0 .2 8 .8 

South Carolina . . . . . . 3,883,329 10,796 60 .2 0 .1 19 .0 0 .1 19 .2 0 .1 1 .6 0 .1 4,488,442 1,108 47 .1 0 .2 17 .7 

South Dakota . . . . . . . 727,425 3,760 73 .5 0 .2 12 .8 0 .2 9 .6 0 .2 4 .1 0 .1 786,956 578 66 .4 0 .2 16 .7 

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . 5,539,896 12,855 65 .8 0 .1 16 .9 0 .1 15 .1 0 .1 2 .2 0 .1 6,194,236 1,625 48 .5 0 .1 18 .2 

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,287,300 20,725 58 .5 0 .1 13 .5 0 .1 23 .7 0 .1 4 .3 0 .1 24,607,114 3,267 51 .4 0 .1 14 .4 

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,195,034 7,056 82 .2 0 .1 7 .2 0 .1 8 .6 0 .1 2 .0 0 .1 2,720,557 825 73 .9 0 .1 9 .6 

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . 588,053 2,818 86 .6 0 .2 9 .3 0 .1 3 .4 0 .1 0 .6 0 .1 600,711 362 76 .4 0 .2 13 .6 

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,844,372 14,253 81 .4 0 .1 9 .2 0 .1 8 .0 0 .1 1 .3 0 .1 7,769,128 1,507 74 .3 0 .1 11 .0 

Washington . . . . . . . . 5,765,201 13,108 77 .9 0 .1 11 .5 0 .1 9 .7 0 .1 0 .8 0 .1 6,606,382 1,592 68 .5 0 .1 12 .5 

West Virginia . . . . . . . 1,763,866 6,330 40 .7 0 .2 25 .7 0 .2 32 .3 0 .2 1 .4 0 .1 1,798,265 793 42 .4 0 .2 26 .2 

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . 5,211,603 9,980 86 .9 0 .1 5 .0 0 .1 6 .2 0 .1 1 .9 0 .1 5,535,525 1,190 74 .6 0 .1 9 .8 

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . 479,485 3,054 81 .7 0 .2 10 .8 0 .2 7 .2 0 .2 0 .3 0 .1 549,049 441 74 .0 0 .3 17 .0 

1 Data from 2000 were obtained from Census 2000 sample survey, while the data for 2010 were obtained from 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey . 2 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are not related 

institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 3 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in relation to ththe estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval . Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding . Source: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey and 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .
24 U.S. Census Bureau Appendix Table 2. Distribution of People, Families, and Households in Census Tracts by Poverty Level of Census Tr

Characteristics: 2000—Con. Characteristics Category I (less than 14.9 percent) Category II (14.9–19.9 percent) Category III (20.0–39.9 percent) Category IV (40.0 percent or m

Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 

PEOPLE United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70.7 0.1 11.2 0.1 15.4 0.1 2.6 

Region Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193,602,489 36,022 30,791,227 24,998 42,289,624 28,595 7,198,892 

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.2 0.1 13.8 0.1 16.3 0.1 23.6 

 Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.1 0.1 15.6 0.1 14.6 0.1 16.0  South . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32.1 0.1 45.8 0.1 43.5 0.1 38.8  West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.6 0.1 24.8 0.1 25.5 0.1 21.6 Age Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193,602,489 36,022 30,791,227 24,998 42,289,624 28,595 7,198,892 

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.1 0.1 25.9 0.1 28.7 0.1 31.7 

18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62.3 0.1 61.8 0.1 60.6 0.1 59.9 65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.6 0.1 12.3 0.1 10.7 0.1 8.4 

Educational Attainment Population 25 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130,223,652 39,521 19,666,397 20,430 25,100,657 22,833 3,630,146 

Less than high school, no diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14.0 0.1 26.8 0.1 36.0 0.1 46.3 

 High school, diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.2 0.1 31.5 0.1 28.8 0.1 25.2  Some college/no degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22.2 0.1 20.1 0.1 17.7 0.1 14.7  Associate’s degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.0 0.1 5.5 0.1 4.5 0.1 3.5  Bachelor’s degree or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.7 0.1 16.1 0.1 13.1 0.1 10.3 Race Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193,602,489 36,022 30,791,227 24,998 42,289,624 28,595 7,198,892 

White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83.7 0.1 68.2 0.1 49.1 0.1 33.8 

 White, not Hispanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79.6 0.1 60.2 0.1 37.1 0.1 20.0  Black alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6 0.1 15.7 0.1 28.7 0.1 41.8  American Indian and Alaska Native alone (AIAN) . . . 0.5 0.1 1.2 0.1 1.7 0.1 3.2  Asian alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7 0.1 3.4 0.1 3.4 0.1 3.3  Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander alone (NHPI) . . 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1  Some Other Race alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.0 0.1 8.2 0.1 13.4 0.1 14.4  Two or More Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 0.1 3.1 0.1 3.5 0.1 3.3  Hispanic (any race) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.8 0.1 17.6 0.1 27.6 0.1 31.1 Poverty Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193,602,489 36,022 30,791,227 24,998 42,289,624 28,595 7,198,892 

Not in poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93.0 0.1 82.7 0.1 72.7 0.1 51.6 

 In poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.0 0.1 17.3 0.1 27.3 0.1 48.4 Employment Status Civilian population in labor force 16 years and over . . 100,992,760 38,181 14,616,140 17,787 18,162,097 19,691 2,641,671 

Employed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95.9 0.1 93.0 0.1 89.6 0.1 83.0 

 Unemployed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 0.1 7.0 0.1 10.4 0.1 17.0 

See footnotes at end of table.
U.S. Census Bureau 25 Appendix Table 2. Distribution of People, Families, and Households in Census Tracts by Poverty Level of Census Tr

Characteristics: 2000—Con. Characteristics Category I (less than 14 .9 percent) Category II (14 .9–19 .9 percent) Category III (20 .0–39 .9 percent) Category IV (40 .0 percent or m

Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 

Marital Status Population 15 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153,269,531 39,286 24,124,372 22,428 32,059,261 25,441 5,255,459 

Married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 .9 0 .1 50 .2 0 .1 42 .9 0 .1 30 .7 

 Widowed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 .2 0 .1 7 .2 0 .1 7 .3 0 .1 6 .9 

 Divorced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 .5 0 .1 11 .2 0 .1 10 .7 0 .1 9 .0 

 Separated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 .6 0 .1 2 .7 0 .1 3 .9 0 .1 5 .1 

 Never married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Metro Status of Current Residence . . . . . . . . . . 23 .8 0 .1 28 .6 0 .1 35 .1 0 .1 48 .2 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193,602,489 36,022 30,791,227 24,998 42,289,624 28,595 7,198,892 

Central city of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 .1 0 .1 35 .4 0 .1 55 .6 0 .1 75 .3 

 Remainder of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 .0 0 .1 31 .5 0 .1 21 .1 0 .1 13 .2 

 Outside of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . FAMILIES Family Type . . . . . . . . . . 16 .8 0 .1 33 .1 0 .1 23 .2 0 .1 11 .5 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52,848,699 13,860 7,862,487 9,737 10,049,268 10,819 1,501,326 

Married couple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 .6 0 .1 71 .1 0 .1 60 .5 0 .1 43 .8 

 Male householder, no wife present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 .1 0 .1 7 .5 0 .1 8 .9 0 .1 9 .2 

 Female householder, no husband present Presence of Related Children . . . . . . . . . . 13 .3 0 .1 21 .5 0 .1 30 .7 0 .1 47 .0 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52,848,699 13,860 7,862,487 9,737 10,049,268 10,819 1,501,326 

With related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 .4 0 .1 54 .2 0 .1 60 .4 0 .1 69 .1 

 No related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Family Income . . . . . . . . . . 49 .6 0 .1 45 .8 0 .1 39 .6 0 .1 30 .9 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52,848,699 13,860 7,862,487 9,737 10,049,268 10,819 1,501,326 

Under 10,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 .1 0 .1 8 .3 0 .1 14 .1 0 .1 28 .4 

10,000 to 29,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 .3 0 .1 29 .7 0 .1 35 .7 0 .1 39 .9 

30,000 to 49,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 .6 0 .1 27 .2 0 .1 24 .4 0 .1 17 .3 

50,000 to 99,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 .1 0 .1 28 .0 0 .1 21 .0 0 .1 11 .6 

100,000 or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HOUSEHOLDS Tenure . . . . . . . . . . 18 .9 0 .1 6 .8 0 .1 4 .8 0 .1 2 .8 

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75,476,486 17,043 11,957,951 11,977 15,520,169 13,383 2,525,495 

Owned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 .7 0 .1 58 .8 0 .1 46 .8 0 .1 27 .2 

 Rented . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 .3 0 .1 41 .2 0 .1 53 .2 0 .1 72 .8 

1 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are not related 

institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 2 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in relation to thable the estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval . Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding .

Source: U .S . Census Bureau, Census 2000 sample survey .
26 U.S. Census Bureau Appendix Table 3. Distribution of People, Families, and Households in Census Tracts by Poverty Level of Census Tr

Characteristics: 2010—Con. Characteristics Category I (less than 14.9 percent) Category II (14.9–19.9 percent) Category III (20.0–39.9 percent) Category IV (40.0 percent or m

Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 

PEOPLE United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60.9 0.1 13.5 0.1 21.6 0.1 4.1 

Region Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183,369,806 65,503 40,548,502 39,868 65,006,093 61,976 12,409,009 3

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.8 0.1 12.3 0.1 13.2 0.1 16.8 

Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23.3 0.1 20.9 0.1 17.2 0.1 23.2 South . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32.5 0.1 43.6 0.1 45.3 0.1 40.1 

West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23.4 0.1 23.2 0.1 24.3 0.1 19.9 

Age Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183,369,806 65,503 40,548,502 39,868 65,006,093 61,976 12,409,009 3

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23.4 0.1 23.6 0.1 25.8 0.1 28.7 

 18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62.7 0.1 63.0 0.1 62.7 0.1 62.7  65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.9 0.1 13.3 0.1 11.4 0.1 8.6 Educational Attainment Population 25 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126,194,013 46,610 27,095,415 24,687 40,841,365 43,224 6,654,197 

Less than high school, no diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.0 0.1 16.8 0.1 24.2 0.1 33.1 

 High school, diploma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.0 0.1 31.9 0.1 31.6 0.1 30.3  Some college/no degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21.5 0.1 22.2 0.1 20.7 0.1 18.8  Associate’s degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 0.1 7.7 0.1 6.5 0.1 5.0  Bachelor’s degree or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.2 0.1 21.3 0.1 16.9 0.1 12.8 Race Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183,369,806 65,503 40,548,502 39,868 65,006,093 61,976 12,409,009 3

White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81.1 0.1 73.8 0.1 61.4 0.1 44.7 

 White, not Hispanic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73.7 0.1 62.1 0.1 44.3 0.1 25.7  Black alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 0.1 13.1 0.1 21.8 0.1 36.6  American Indian and Alaska Native alone (AIAN) . . . 0.5 0.1 0.9 0.1 1.4 0.1 2.1  Asian alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 0.1 3.8 0.1 3.6 0.1 3.4  Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander alone (NHPI) . . 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1  Some Other Race alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9 0.1 5.4 0.1 8.8 0.1 10.4  Two or More Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 0.1 2.8 0.1 2.9 0.1 2.7  Hispanic (any race) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 0.1 18.3 0.1 27.6 0.1 31.4 Poverty Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183,369,806 65,503 40,548,502 39,868 65,006,093 61,976 12,409,009 3

Not in poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92.4 0.1 82.7 0.2 72.5 0.2 51.0 

 In poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 0.1 17.3 0.2 27.5 0.2 49.0 Employment Status Civilian population in labor force 16 years and over . . 98,394,896 50,118 20,653,134 34,806 31,248,425 64,152 5,263,557 2

Employed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92.6 0.1 89.8 0.1 87.1 0.1 82.2 

 Unemployed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4 0.1 10.2 0.1 12.9 0.1 17.8 

See footnotes at end of table.
U.S. Census Bureau 27 Appendix Table 3. Distribution of People, Families, and Households in Census Tracts by Poverty Level of Census Tr

Characteristics: 2010—Con. Characteristics Category I (less than 14 .9 percent) Category II (14 .9–19 .9 percent) Category III (20 .0–39 .9 percent) Category IV (40 .0 percent or m

Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 Margin of error2 (±) Estimate1 

Marital Status Population 15 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148,178,638 59,486 32,621,326 29,844 51,003,384 50,191 9,406,407 2

Married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 .9 0 .2 47 .6 0 .2 40 .2 0 .2 27 .3 

 Widowed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 .6 0 .1 6 .3 0 .1 6 .2 0 .1 5 .7 

 Divorced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 .1 0 .1 12 .1 0 .1 12 .1 0 .1 10 .6 

 Separated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 .6 0 .1 2 .5 0 .1 3 .4 0 .1 4 .1 

 Never married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Metro Status of Current Residence . . . . . . . . . . 26 .8 0 .1 31 .5 0 .1 38 .1 0 .1 52 .3 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183,369,806 65,503 40,548,502 39,868 65,006,093 61,976 12,409,009 3

Central city of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 .9 0 .1 31 .9 0 .1 46 .8 0 .1 73 .3 

 Remainder of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 .8 0 .1 42 .8 0 .1 31 .0 0 .1 16 .1 

 Outside of metropolitan area . . . . . . . . . . FAMILIES Family Type . . . . . . . . . . 12 .2 0 .1 25 .3 0 .1 22 .2 0 .1 10 .6 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48,838,722 117,662 10,160,258 36,277 15,107,217 61,304 2,489,351 

Married couple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 .1 0 .2 70 .3 0 .2 60 .2 0 .2 43 .2 

 Male householder, no wife present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 .7 0 .1 8 .0 0 .1 9 .7 0 .1 10 .9 

 Female householder, no husband present Presence of Related Children . . . . . . . . . . 14 .2 0 .1 21 .7 0 .2 30 .1 0 .1 45 .9 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48,838,722 117,662 10,160,258 36,277 15,107,217 61,304 2,489,351 

With related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 .1 0 .1 49 .2 0 .2 54 .6 0 .1 63 .2 

 No related children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Family Income . . . . . . . . . . 52 .9 0 .1 50 .8 0 .2 45 .4 0 .1 36 .8 

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48,838,722 117,662 10,160,258 36,277 15,107,217 61,304 2,489,351 

Under 10,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 .2 0 .1 5 .5 0 .1 9 .3 0 .1 19 .2 

10,000 to 29,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 .1 0 .1 19 .9 0 .1 27 .6 0 .1 38 .3 

30,000 to 49,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 .4 0 .1 21 .7 0 .1 22 .4 0 .1 19 .2 

50,000 to 99,999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 .7 0 .1 35 .2 0 .1 28 .9 0 .1 17 .7 

100,000 or higher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HOUSEHOLDS Tenure . . . . . . . . . . 36 .6 0 .1 17 .7 0 .1 11 .8 0 .1 5 .6 

Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70,631,270 115,914 15,799,839 38,516 24,343,499 72,598 4,452,194 

Owned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 .8 0 .2 61 .9 0 .2 50 .0 0 .2 31 .0 

 Rented . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 .2 0 .2 38 .1 0 .2 50 .0 0 .2 69 .0 

1 Poverty status is determined for individuals in housing units and noninstitutional group quarters . The poverty universe excludes children under age 15 who are not related 

institutional group quarters, and people living in college dormitories or military barracks . 2 Data are based on a sample and are subject to sampling variability . A margin of error is a measure of an estimate’s variability . The larger the margin of error in relation to threliable the estimate . This number when added to or subtracted from the estimate forms the 90 percent confidence interval . Note: Details may not sum to totals due to rounding .

Source: U .S . Census Bureau, 2008–2012 5-year American Community Survey data .