America’s economic landscape looks very different depending on where you live.

This map of U.S. poverty rates by state, via Visual Capitalist's Pallavi Rao, makes that disparity clearer.

Each shade represents the share of residents living below the poverty line, inviting quick comparisons across the country.

The data for this visualization comes from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The U.S. Census Bureau calculates poverty lines using pretax household income against a threshold at three times the cost of a minimum food diet from 1963, adjusted for family size and inflation.

For reference, this is a quick guide on how much a household needs to be earning to be considered below the poverty line in 2023.

• One person: ≤$15,480

• Two people: ≤$19,680

• Three people: ≤$24,230

• Four people: ≤$31,200

Ranked: U.S. Poverty Rates by State

Louisiana tops the list at 18.9%, leaving nearly one in five residents below the poverty threshold despite the state’s large energy sector.

RankStateState CodeShare of Population
in Poverty# in Poverty

1LouisianaLA18.9%853K

2New MexicoNM18.5%388K

3MississippiMS17.3%501K

4ArkansasAR15.8%473K

5KentuckyKY15.7%699K

6West VirginiaWV15.3%268K

7OklahomaOK14.9%589K

8AlabamaAL14.6%727K

9District of ColumbiaDC13.4%88K

10North CarolinaNC13.2%1.4M

11TexasTX13.1%3.9M

12GeorgiaGA12.9%1.4M

13NevadaNV12.9%409K

14South CarolinaSC12.7%673K

15FloridaFL12.5%2.8M

16ArizonaAZ12.4%903K

17New YorkNY12.1%2.3M

18MichiganMI11.9%1.2M

19CaliforniaCA11.7%4.5M

20MissouriMO11.1%675K

21OhioOH10.9%1.3M

22PennsylvaniaPA10.7%1.4M

23TennesseeTN10.6%744K

24AlaskaAK10.4%74K

25IllinoisIL10%1.2M

26OregonOR9.8%415K

27IndianaIN9.7%659K

28MontanaMT9.7%109K

29DelawareDE9.6%98K

30HawaiiHI9.3%133K

31North DakotaND9.3%72K

32VirginiaVA9.2%783K

33IowaIA9%287K

34IdahoID8.9%172K

35KansasKS8.9%255K

36Rhode IslandRI8.9%96K

37ConnecticutCT8.8%318K

38MassachusettsMA8.8%604K

39MaineME8.7%120K

40WyomingWY8.6%49K

41MarylandMD8.5%524K

42WashingtonWA8.5%658K

43NebraskaNE8.4%165K

44New JerseyNJ8.4%776K

45WisconsinWI8.4%490K

46South DakotaSD8.3%74K

47ColoradoCO8.2%473K

48VermontVT7.7%49K

49MinnesotaMN7.2%409K

50New HampshireNH7.1%98K

51UtahUT6.7%226K

N/AU.S.US11.4%37.6M

Neighboring Mississippi (17.3%) and Arkansas (15.8%) tell a similar story of limited job diversity and chronically low household incomes.

In fact, a contiguous belt stretching from Louisiana and Mississippi through Arkansas and up to West Virginia contains every state with poverty rates above 15%.

Historic underinvestment, weaker safety-net programs, and lower average wages all help explain why the South accounts for four of the five worst-affected states.

Northern and Plains States See the Lowest Poverty Shares

In stark contrast, Utah (6.7%), New Hampshire (7.1%), Minnesota (7.2%), and Colorado (8.2%) post some of the lowest poverty figures in the country.

These states benefit from stronger labor markets, higher median wages, and broader access to education and healthcare.

Even populous Midwestern states like Illinois and Wisconsin keep poverty near or below 10%, underscoring how economic structure and public policy can insulate households from hardship.

Geography, then, is a reliable—if imperfect—proxy for opportunity in today’s America.

Population Size Skews the National Picture

Looking only at rates can mask the human scale of poverty.

California’s poverty rate sits near the national average at 11.7%, yet its sheer population means 4.5 million Californians live in poverty.

Texas tells a similar story: its 13.1% rate translates into 3.9 million people, the second-largest total nationwide.

Altogether, the U.S. counted 37.6 million residents in poverty during in 2023, almost the size of Canada’s entire population