The COVID-19 pandemic sent the U.S. unemployment rate to 14.8% in April 2020, its highest level since the Great Depression. Normally, such an economic shock would result in a spike in the national poverty rate. However, due to three rounds of economic stimulus payments, some experts predict the poverty rate may actually decline substantially in 2020.
As of 2019, the most recent year with an official poverty rate released by the U.S. Census Bureau, 13.4% of the U.S. population lived below the poverty line. By some estimates, that share might have dropped as low as 7.7% in 2020, the lowest level since 1967, when record keeping began.Â
Of course, the poverty rate varies considerably across the country, and even before the COVID-19 unemployment crisis, there were parts of the country where poverty was already widespread — where the share of residents living in poverty was more than double the national average.Â
Using five-year estimates from the Census’ 2019 American Community Survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified the ZIP code with the highest poverty rate in every state.Â
The poverty threshold is based on income, and in most of the country, an individual with an annual income of less than $12,880, or a family of four earning less than $26,500, is considered to be living in poverty. Not surprisingly, in every ZIP code on this list with available data, the median household income is lower than it is across the state as a whole. Here is a look at the poorest town in every state.Â
Click here to see the zip code with the highest poverty rate in every state
To determine the ZIP code with the highest poverty rate in every state, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed five-year estimates of the percentage of people for whom poverty status had been determined as living below the poverty line from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 American Community Survey.
We used ZIP Code Tabulation Areas — a census geography type which defines areal representations of United States Postal Service ZIP codes (USPS ZIP codes do not define geographic boundaries but instead are a network of mail delivery routes in a service area). We refer to Census ZCTAs as ZIP codes.
Of the 33,120 ZIP codes the Census Bureau publishes data for, 32,936 had boundaries that fell within one of the 50 states, while the rest were in the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico.
ZIP codes were excluded if poverty rates were not available in the 2019 ACS, if the population for which the poverty status had been determined was less than 1,000, if 25% or more of a ZIP code’s population were enrolled in undergraduate, professional, or graduate school during the same period, or if the sampling error associated with a ZIP code’s data was deemed too high.
The sampling error was defined as too high if the coefficient of variation — a statistical assessment of how reliable an estimate is — for a ZIP code’s poverty rate was above 15% and greater than two standard deviations above the mean CV for all ZIP codes’ poverty rates. We similarly excluded ZIP codes that had a sampling error too high for their population for which poverty status had been determined, using the same definition.
The remaining 20,906 places were ranked within their state based on their poverty rates. To break ties, we used median household income..
Additional information on the number of people living below the poverty line, median household income, and the share of households receiving SNAP benefits are also five-year estimates from the 2019 ACS.
Alabama: 35443
> Location: Boligee, Alabama
> Poverty rate: 61.3% (Alabama: 16.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,090 (Alabama: 795,989)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 50.7% (Alabama: 14.0%)
> Median household income: $15,000 (Alabama: $50,536)
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Source: Seabix / Wikimedia Commons
Alaska: 99604
> Location: Hooper Bay, Alaska
> Poverty rate: 40.9% (Alaska: 10.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 465 (Alaska: 76,933)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 62.3% (Alaska: 10.5%)
> Median household income: $36,250 (Alaska: $77,640)
Arizona: 85911
> Location: Cibecue, Arizona
> Poverty rate: 66.2% (Arizona: 15.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,303 (Arizona: 1,043,764)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 57.3% (Arizona: 11.1%)
> Median household income: $14,545 (Arizona: $58,945)
Source: Michael Dean Shelton / iStock via Getty Images
Arkansas: 72114
> Location: North Little Rock, Arkansas
> Poverty rate: 47.9% (Arkansas: 17.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,019 (Arkansas: 496,260)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 31.4% (Arkansas: 12.1%)
> Median household income: $20,008 (Arkansas: $47,597)
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Source: Capricorn90, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
California: 93261
> Location: Richgrove, California
> Poverty rate: 56.7% (California: 13.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,379 (California: 5,149,742)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 30.8% (California: 8.9%)
> Median household income: $21,010 (California: $75,235)
Colorado: 81054
> Location: Las Animas, Colorado
> Poverty rate: 33.5% (Colorado: 10.3%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,040 (Colorado: 565,873)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 35.0% (Colorado: 7.5%)
> Median household income: $29,214 (Colorado: $72,331)
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Connecticut: 06702
> Location: Waterbury, Connecticut
> Poverty rate: 59.5% (Connecticut: 9.9%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,650 (Connecticut: 344,146)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 65.2% (Connecticut: 11.9%)
> Median household income: $12,908 (Connecticut: $78,444)
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Source: pabradyphoto / Getty Images
Delaware: 19801
> Location: Wilmington, Delaware
> Poverty rate: 35.2% (Delaware: 11.8%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,365 (Delaware: 109,400)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 37.0% (Delaware: 10.9%)
> Median household income: $30,419 (Delaware: $68,287)
Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Florida: 32202
> Location: Jacksonville, Florida
> Poverty rate: 45.8% (Florida: 14.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,748 (Florida: 2,870,487)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 30.8% (Florida: 13.6%)
> Median household income: $33,967 (Florida: $55,660)
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Source: 93558439@N05 / Flickr
Georgia: 31815
> Location: Lumpkin, Georgia
> Poverty rate: 44.4% (Georgia: 15.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 810 (Georgia: 1,528,558)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 33.8% (Georgia: 12.8%)
> Median household income: $25,216 (Georgia: $58,700)
Source: W Nowicki, CC BY 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Hawaii: 96737
> Location: Hawaiian Ocean View, Hawaii
> Poverty rate: 55.2% (Hawaii: 9.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 2,764 (Hawaii: 130,649)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 47.5% (Hawaii: 10.8%)
> Median household income: $15,654 (Hawaii: $81,275)
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Idaho: 83811
> Location: Clark Fork, Idaho
> Poverty rate: 37.7% (Idaho: 13.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 491 (Idaho: 221,256)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 22.1% (Idaho: 9.8%)
> Median household income: $22,625 (Idaho: $55,785)
Source: Mark Schierbecker / Wikimedia Commons
Illinois: 62201
> Location: East St. Louis, Illinois
> Poverty rate: 49.0% (Illinois: 12.5%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,357 (Illinois: 1,557,873)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 58.2% (Illinois: 12.8%)
> Median household income: $15,408 (Illinois: $65,886)
Source: Davel5957 / Getty Images
Indiana: 46601
> Location: South Bend, Indiana
> Poverty rate: 45.0% (Indiana: 13.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 2,225 (Indiana: 867,996)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 33.8% (Indiana: 9.8%)
> Median household income: $21,143 (Indiana: $56,303)
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Source: Jacob Boomsma / Getty Images
Iowa: 50703
> Location: Waterloo, Iowa
> Poverty rate: 29.1% (Iowa: 11.5%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,455 (Iowa: 348,122)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 26.6% (Iowa: 10.2%)
> Median household income: $34,698 (Iowa: $60,523)
Kansas: 66101
> Location: Kansas City, Kansas
> Poverty rate: 38.6% (Kansas: 12.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 4,736 (Kansas: 337,739)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 27.9% (Kansas: 7.5%)
> Median household income: $28,552 (Kansas: $59,597)
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Source: Al / Flickr
Kentucky: 41773
> Location: Vicco, Kentucky
> Poverty rate: 49.2% (Kentucky: 17.3%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 665 (Kentucky: 747,010)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 31.9% (Kentucky: 14.0%)
> Median household income: $22,500 (Kentucky: $50,589)
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Source: wellesenterprises / Getty Images
Louisiana: 71202
> Location: Monroe, Louisiana
> Poverty rate: 51.3% (Louisiana: 19.2%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 12,817 (Louisiana: 871,467)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 42.0% (Louisiana: 15.4%)
> Median household income: $23,285 (Louisiana: $49,469)
Maine: 04911
> Location: Anson, Maine
> Poverty rate: 32.5% (Maine: 11.8%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 712 (Maine: 153,131)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 29.0% (Maine: 13.5%)
> Median household income: $36,375 (Maine: $57,918)
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Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Maryland: 21223
> Location: Baltimore, Maryland
> Poverty rate: 37.2% (Maryland: 9.2%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 8,219 (Maryland: 539,991)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 47.9% (Maryland: 10.2%)
> Median household income: $28,549 (Maryland: $84,805)
Source: DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images
Massachusetts: 01105
> Location: Springfield, Massachusetts
> Poverty rate: 50.8% (Massachusetts: 10.3%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,844 (Massachusetts: 680,962)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 63.5% (Massachusetts: 11.7%)
> Median household income: $19,427 (Massachusetts: $81,215)
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Source: Steven_Kriemadis / Getty Images
Michigan: 48201
> Location: Detroit, Michigan
> Poverty rate: 50.8% (Michigan: 14.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 7,568 (Michigan: 1,398,527)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 39.1% (Michigan: 13.3%)
> Median household income: $17,331 (Michigan: $57,144)
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Source: By Crash over ride at the English-language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3770655 / Wikimedia Commons
Minnesota: 56670
> Location: Redby, Minnesota
> Poverty rate: 41.2% (Minnesota: 9.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 476 (Minnesota: 526,065)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 43.2% (Minnesota: 7.9%)
> Median household income: $38,990 (Minnesota: $71,306)
Mississippi: 38769
> Location: Rosedale, Mississippi
> Poverty rate: 55.4% (Mississippi: 20.3%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 950 (Mississippi: 585,786)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 47.2% (Mississippi: 15.4%)
> Median household income: $17,115 (Mississippi: $45,081)
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Missouri: 63133
> Location: Pagedale, Missouri
> Poverty rate: 42.0% (Missouri: 13.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,013 (Missouri: 810,045)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 40.9% (Missouri: 11.1%)
> Median household income: $23,941 (Missouri: $55,461)
Source: diversey / Flickr
Montana: 59527
> Location: Hays, Montana
> Poverty rate: 44.3% (Montana: 13.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 446 (Montana: 134,605)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 25.8% (Montana: 9.2%)
> Median household income: $32,375 (Montana: $54,970)
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Nebraska: 68039
> Location: Macy, Nebraska
> Poverty rate: 46.0% (Nebraska: 11.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 636 (Nebraska: 206,579)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 46.6% (Nebraska: 8.3%)
> Median household income: $29,844 (Nebraska: $61,439)
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Nevada: 89427
> Location: Schurz, Nevada
> Poverty rate: 42.6% (Nevada: 13.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 495 (Nevada: 384,690)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 24.1% (Nevada: 11.8%)
> Median household income: $31,250 (Nevada: $60,365)
Source: DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images
New Hampshire: 03101
> Location: Manchester, New Hampshire
> Poverty rate: 33.0% (New Hampshire: 7.6%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 960 (New Hampshire: 98,682)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 22.0% (New Hampshire: 6.9%)
> Median household income: $32,607 (New Hampshire: $76,768)
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Source: ChrisBoswell / Getty Images
New Jersey: 08102
> Location: Camden, New Jersey
> Poverty rate: 47.2% (New Jersey: 10.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,290 (New Jersey: 869,081)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 43.2% (New Jersey: 8.7%)
> Median household income: $21,138 (New Jersey: $82,545)
Source: Jordan Acuff-Patton / iStock via Getty Images
New Mexico: 87323
> Location: Thoreau, New Mexico
> Poverty rate: 52.8% (New Mexico: 19.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 2,114 (New Mexico: 392,065)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 29.8% (New Mexico: 17.2%)
> Median household income: $20,137 (New Mexico: $49,754)
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Source: DebraMillet / Getty Images
New York: 13202
> Location: Syracuse, New York
> Poverty rate: 53.9% (New York: 14.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,118 (New York: 2,681,277)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 38.3% (New York: 14.7%)
> Median household income: $20,196 (New York: $68,486)
Source: gerrydincher / Flickr
North Carolina: 28333
> Location: Brogden, North Carolina
> Poverty rate: 41.0% (North Carolina: 14.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 4,465 (North Carolina: 1,467,591)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 33.0% (North Carolina: 12.6%)
> Median household income: $29,773 (North Carolina: $54,602)
North Dakota: 58335
> Location: Fort Totten, North Dakota
> Poverty rate: 61.9% (North Dakota: 10.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,162 (North Dakota: 78,198)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 44.6% (North Dakota: 6.7%)
> Median household income: $26,250 (North Dakota: $64,894)
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Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Ohio: 44115
> Location: Cleveland, Ohio
> Poverty rate: 61.5% (Ohio: 14.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,027 (Ohio: 1,588,343)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 46.3% (Ohio: 13.1%)
> Median household income: $14,952 (Ohio: $56,602)
Source: Davel5957 / Getty Images
Oklahoma: 74110
> Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma
> Poverty rate: 38.5% (Oklahoma: 15.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,524 (Oklahoma: 598,373)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 33.0% (Oklahoma: 12.8%)
> Median household income: $28,027 (Oklahoma: $52,919)
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Source: icetsarina / Flickr
Oregon: 97761
> Location: Warm Springs, Oregon
> Poverty rate: 32.4% (Oregon: 13.2%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,332 (Oregon: 533,527)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 50.3% (Oregon: 15.8%)
> Median household income: $46,382 (Oregon: $62,818)
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Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Pennsylvania: 19121
> Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
> Poverty rate: 48.3% (Pennsylvania: 12.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 15,199 (Pennsylvania: 1,539,183)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 40.3% (Pennsylvania: 13.3%)
> Median household income: $21,201 (Pennsylvania: $61,744)
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
Rhode Island: 02863
> Location: Central Falls, Rhode Island
> Poverty rate: 30.2% (Rhode Island: 12.4%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 5,718 (Rhode Island: 125,826)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 39.7% (Rhode Island: 15.3%)
> Median household income: $32,928 (Rhode Island: $67,167)
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Source: Calvin Beale / Wikimedia Commons
South Carolina: 29853
> Location: Williston, South Carolina
> Poverty rate: 37.5% (South Carolina: 15.2%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 2,278 (South Carolina: 741,650)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 22.3% (South Carolina: 12.3%)
> Median household income: $31,598 (South Carolina: $53,199)
Source: Courtesy of Red Cloud Indian School
South Dakota: 57772
> Location: Porcupine, South Dakota
> Poverty rate: 74.8% (South Dakota: 13.1%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,728 (South Dakota: 110,553)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 68.4% (South Dakota: 9.2%)
> Median household income: $19,750 (South Dakota: $58,275)
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Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Tennessee: 38126
> Location: Memphis, Tennessee
> Poverty rate: 65.2% (Tennessee: 15.2%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,913 (Tennessee: 996,930)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 53.6% (Tennessee: 13.6%)
> Median household income: $12,676 (Tennessee: $53,320)
Source: DenisTangneyJr / iStock via Getty Images
Texas: 78576
> Location: Penitas, Texas
> Poverty rate: 67.0% (Texas: 14.7%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 7,099 (Texas: 4,072,194)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 46.8% (Texas: 11.8%)
> Median household income: $21,230 (Texas: $61,874)
Utah: 84784
> Location: Hildale, Utah
> Poverty rate: 47.6% (Utah: 9.8%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,354 (Utah: 298,537)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 62.6% (Utah: 6.7%)
> Median household income: N/A (Utah: $71,621)
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Vermont: 05404
> Location: Winooski, Vermont
> Poverty rate: 29.5% (Vermont: 10.9%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 2,078 (Vermont: 65,652)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 21.0% (Vermont: 11.3%)
> Median household income: $51,728 (Vermont: $61,973)
Source: Sean Pavone / Getty Images
Virginia: 24016
> Location: Roanoke, Virginia
> Poverty rate: 43.2% (Virginia: 10.6%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 3,538 (Virginia: 865,691)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 25.2% (Virginia: 8.2%)
> Median household income: $27,856 (Virginia: $74,222)
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Source: halbergman / Getty Images
Washington: 98421
> Location: Tacoma, Washington
> Poverty rate: 64.5% (Washington: 10.8%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 1,004 (Washington: 785,244)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: N/A (Washington: 11.9%)
> Median household income: N/A (Washington: $73,775)
Source: Magnolia677 / Wikimedia Commons
West Virginia: 24844
> Location: Iaeger, West Virginia
> Poverty rate: 45.8% (West Virginia: 17.6%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 540 (West Virginia: 310,044)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 27.1% (West Virginia: 16.8%)
> Median household income: $16,512 (West Virginia: $46,711)
Wisconsin: 54150
> Location: Neopit, Wisconsin
> Poverty rate: 51.8% (Wisconsin: 11.3%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 563 (Wisconsin: 639,160)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 29.2% (Wisconsin: 10.8%)
> Median household income: $29,966 (Wisconsin: $61,747)
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Wyoming: 82514
> Location: Fort Washakie, Wyoming
> Poverty rate: 25.6% (Wyoming: 11.0%)
> Number of people living below poverty line: 395 (Wyoming: 62,257)
> Households receiving SNAP benefits: 18.4% (Wyoming: 5.4%)
> Median household income: $51,429 (Wyoming: $64,049)
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