In 2021, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was the city with the highest poverty rate of the United States' most populated cities. In this statistic, the cities are sorted by poverty rate, not population. The most populated city in 2021 according to the source was New York city - which had a poverty rate of 18 percent.

The McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metropolitan area in Texas was ranked first with 27.2 percent of its population living below the poverty level in 2023. Eagle Pass, Texas had the second-highest poverty rate, at 24.4 percent.

Graph and download economic data for Estimated Percent of People of All Ages in Poverty for United States (PPAAUS00000A156NCEN) from 1989 to 2023 about percent, child, poverty, and USA.

In 2021, the city of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania had the highest family poverty rate of the 25 most populated cities in the United States. The city with the next highest poverty rate was Houston, Texas.

In 2021, New York city had the highest number of people living below the poverty line, with 1.4 million people living in poverty. This is significantly higher than any of the other most populated cities.

These data identify persistent poverty counties for 10|20|30 funding formulas. In these counties, at least 20% of the population had incomes below poverty in 1997, 2007, 2017, and 2020 as estimated by the Small Area Income & Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) from the US Census Bureau. These data also indicate how many times a county met this threshold for these 4 periods (from 0 to 4). In addition, these data include the total number of census tracts and tracts consisting of 20% or more of the population with incomes below poverty (considered "high poverty" tracts) based on the 2015-2019 American Community Survey estimates. The data also include the percent in poverty and the population in poverty for these four periods. Please note that LINC also includes historical data on poverty from the American Community Survey and the 2000 and before decennial census. These estimates may differ. In addition, the choice of different time periods may lead to different results regarding persistent poverty counties and numbers of high poverty census tracts.

This study explored the lives of the working poor in the inner city. Three hundred male and female participants were drawn from central and west Harlem, New York City; 200 worked at one of four fast food restaurants in Harlem, and 100 had applied to one of those restaurants but were not hired. Participants were African American, Dominican and Puerto Rican of varied ages, most between 15 and 40 years of age. Educational status also varied, with the majority of participants' highest level of education being a high school degree. This study consists of three waves. The first wave was conducted in 1993-1994 with 300 participants. All 300 completed a survey, providing data on basic demographics (such as race, marital status, income, members of family, places where respondent has lived), as well as information on education, health care, and in-depth employment history. One-hundred fifty of these participants completed an extensive, semi-structured three to four hour interview telling their life history, covering topics such as family history; neighborhood identity; work history and aspirations; and race relations. Interviewers noted their impressions of the neighborhood and the physical appearance of the participant and her surroundings. The restaurant owners and managers were interviewed as well. Twelve of the participants agreed to be intensely studied; members of the research team worked alongside these participants at the fast food restaurants for four months, got to know their parents and children, and interviewed other key figures in their lives such as teachers and priests. The second wave was conducted in 1997-1998 with 100 of the original participants - some were employed, and some were unemployed. A survey was completed, addressing the same topics as the wave one survey. Interviews were conducted to ascertain life updates since wave one. The third wave was conducted in 2001-2002 with 40 of the 100 wave 2 participants. No more follow-up waves are planned. The Henry A. Murray Research Archives currently holds original record paper data, and audiotape data from waves 1 and 2 of this study.

This report was written in collaboration between the Mayor's Office of Innovation and the Rochester Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative (RMAPI) and released in December 2019. Executive SummaryThe Rochester Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative (RMAPI) has selected single female headed households with children as one of its key target populations in which to focus strategy and its next phase of initiatives. This report is intended to provide additional insight on this population to support the next phase of RMAPI’s strategic planning as well as broader advocacy efforts on behalf of this population.

We begin with a brief summary of historic policy and societal factors known to have contributed to the current day inequities, written in collaboration with content experts from RMAPI.

The core of this report is a fact sheet based on analysis of US Census data. Major findings include:

Finding 1: Families headed by unmarried parents are a significant segment of the city population and account for the majority of individuals living below the poverty level in the city.

Finding 2: Unmarried households with children experience lower incomes, lower rates of home ownership, and higher rent burdens compared to their married counterparts

Finding 3: Women and people of color are overrepresented among the heads of unmarried households with children.

Finding 4: Four in ten unmarried householders with children have less than a high school education. Nearly 80 percent of those without a high school education are in poverty.

Finding 5: Unmarried householders with children in poverty are more likely to be disabled or face other common barriers to employment.

Finding 6: The more adults present in unmarried households with children, the less likely that household is to be in poverty. This trend amplifies when considering the number of employed adults.

Finding 7: Unmarried parents under age 40 head the majority of all households with children in Rochester. Younger householders correlate with higher poverty rates regardless of marriage status.

Finding 8: A birth before age 20, being unmarried, and having not completed high school education are three factors that, when compounded, are associated with poor economic outcomes.

Finding 9: The highest densities of unmarried householders with children are clustered in the highest poverty neighborhoods in the city of Rochester

We end with a discussion of the gaps in available data, acknowledging that there is room for further investigation and interpretation, data collection, and insights. We recommend readers to think critically about what is presented and how it might impact their own work in poverty reduction efforts. We present a series of questions that are a jumping off point for new inquiry and reflection. Methodology can be found in the Appendix.

Data Source:2017 Census American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Public Microdata SampleData and documentation can be accessed here:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

This statistic illustrates the air pollution level in South American cities as of 2018. In that year, with a PM10 average of ** microgram per cubic meter, Santa Gertrudes in Brazil was the most polluted city in South America.

Out of all 50 states, New York had the highest per-capita real gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, at 92,341 U.S. dollars, followed closely by Massachusetts. Mississippi had the lowest per-capita real GDP, at 41,603 U.S. dollars. While not a state, the District of Columbia had a per capita GDP of more than 210,780 U.S. dollars. What is real GDP? A country’s real GDP is a measure that shows the value of the goods and services produced by an economy and is adjusted for inflation. The real GDP of a country helps economists to see the health of a country’s economy and its standard of living. Downturns in GDP growth can indicate financial difficulties, such as the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, when the U.S. GDP decreased by 2.5 percent. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on U.S. GDP, shrinking the economy 2.8 percent. The U.S. economy rebounded in 2021, however, growing by nearly six percent. Why real GDP per capita matters Real GDP per capita takes the GDP of a country, state, or metropolitan area and divides it by the number of people in that area. Some argue that per-capita GDP is more important than the GDP of a country, as it is a good indicator of whether or not the country’s population is getting wealthier, thus increasing the standard of living in that area. The best measure of standard of living when comparing across countries is thought to be GDP per capita at purchasing power parity (PPP) which uses the prices of specific goods to compare the absolute purchasing power of a countries currency.

Guatemala is one of the countries with the worst social mobility scores in Latin America. In 2020, the average social mobility score in Guatemala reached 43.5 points, out of a maximum of 100. The lower the score, the less a particular economy provides equal opportunities for social advancement. Among the different areas analyzed to construct this index, Guatemala scored best in work opportunities, where it was awarded 71 points out of 100. In turn, social protection was the worst social mobility area for this Central American nation, at only 22.6 points.

Portugal, Canada, and the United States were the countries with the highest house price to income ratio in 2024. In all three countries, the index exceeded 130 index points, while the average for all OECD countries stood at 116.2 index points. The index measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing nominal house price by nominal disposable income per head, with 2015 set as a base year when the index amounted to 100. An index value of 120, for example, would mean that house price growth has outpaced income growth by 20 percent since 2015. How have house prices worldwide changed since the COVID-19 pandemic? House prices started to rise gradually after the global financial crisis (2007–2008), but this trend accelerated with the pandemic. The countries with advanced economies, which usually have mature housing markets, experienced stronger growth than countries with emerging economies. Real house price growth (accounting for inflation) peaked in 2022 and has since lost some of the gain. Although, many countries experienced a decline in house prices, the global house price index shows that property prices in 2023 were still substantially higher than before COVID-19. Renting vs. buying In the past, house prices have grown faster than rents. However, the home affordability has been declining notably, with a direct impact on rental prices. As people struggle to buy a property of their own, they often turn to rental accommodation. This has resulted in a growing demand for rental apartments and soaring rental prices.