Large cities and metropolitan areas have long been hubs of economic activity and prosperity in the United States. Large employers that can pay enough to attract top talent from around the country often have operations in places like Austin, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco. As a result, these cities, and many others like them, have a high concentration of high-income residents. But while some American cities stand out for the economic opportunity they offer, many others are notable for the opposite reason.

There are 384 metropolitan areas in the United States, and in dozens of them, incomes are far lower than average, and serious financial hardship is widespread.

The typical household in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area in Texas earns $48,115 a year – the 21st lowest among the 384 U.S. metropolitan areas with available data, and about $21,600 less than the national median household income of $69,717.

Brownsville also has a higher-than-average poverty rate. An estimated 24.7% of the metro area population live below the poverty line, compared to 12.8% of all Americans nationwide.

Across broad populations, incomes tend to rise with educational attainment, and in the Brownsville-Harlingen area, only 20.6% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 35.0% of all Americans in the same age group.

All data in this story is based on one-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey.

 

Rank	Metro area	Median household income, 2021 ($)	Poverty rate, 2021 (%)	Adults with a bachelor’s degree, 2021 (%)
1	Beckley, WV	38,737	22.7	20.4
2	Valdosta, GA	42,233	27.6	22.3
3	Sumter, SC	43,210	20.3	22.0
4	Morristown, TN	43,213	19.5	18.2
5	Greenville, NC	44,450	22.5	33.6
6	McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX	44,818	29.3	20.0
7	Monroe, LA	45,001	27.2	23.9
8	Las Cruces, NM	45,178	19.4	30.1
9	Gadsden, AL	45,298	16.8	18.2
10	Anniston-Oxford, AL	46,524	19.8	19.4
11	Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ	46,616	18.2	15.1
12	Decatur, IL	46,807	17.6	19.0
13	Pine Bluff, AR	46,826	15.0	23.3
14	Alexandria, LA	47,032	19.9	21.6
15	Homosassa Springs, FL	47,197	16.1	20.8
16	Goldsboro, NC	47,595	19.9	20.3
17	Dothan, AL	47,665	19.5	20.5
18	Hot Springs, AR	47,694	13.4	23.8
19	Farmington, NM	47,819	26.7	15.6
20	Jonesboro, AR	47,935	21.0	28.7
21	Brownsville-Harlingen, TX	48,115	24.7	20.6
22	Shreveport-Bossier City, LA	48,164	21.4	25.8
23	Sebring-Avon Park, FL	48,564	13.4	18.3
24	Albany, GA	48,659	18.7	23.0
25	Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA	48,771	16.9	21.9
26	Grants Pass, OR	48,785	16.7	21.0
27	Fort Smith, AR-OK	49,065	19.6	20.3
28	Danville, IL	49,091	20.9	15.9
29	Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH	49,362	16.9	22.5
30	Lawton, OK	49,422	20.1	24.3
31	Mobile, AL	49,691	17.9	22.3
32	Florence, SC	49,724	19.3	21.4
33	Hinesville, GA	49,733	19.3	20.8
34	College Station-Bryan, TX	49,927	23.4	38.1
35	Texarkana, TX-AR	50,070	18.1	20.9
36	Terre Haute, IN	50,440	18.0	19.7
37	Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH	50,456	17.3	22.7
38	Muncie, IN	50,497	18.1	24.5
39	Saginaw, MI	50,606	21.8	22.5
40	Carbondale-Marion, IL	50,953	17.1	28.9
41	El Paso, TX	51,002	20.1	26.0
42	Johnson City, TN	51,119	15.1	29.8
43	Mansfield, OH	51,158	12.3	17.4
44	Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA	51,194	16.6	25.0
45	Cumberland, MD-WV	51,440	13.5	22.8
46	Lima, OH	51,497	15.5	18.5
47	Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL	51,639	17.4	24.8
48	Rocky Mount, NC	51,769	15.1	21.2
49	El Centro, CA	51,809	16.4	13.5
50	Laredo, TX	51,867	22.4	20.6

 

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