Money
Visualizing the Poverty Rate of Each U.S. State
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Visualizing the Poverty Rate of Each U.S. State
How many people live below the poverty line in states across the country?
Today’s interactive map comes to us from Overflow Solutions, and it visualizes the percentage of people living in poverty across the United States over the time period of 2008-2017.
U.S. Poverty Rates Today
To start, we’ll look at the situation using the most recent data, which was pulled from the American Community Survey (2017) done by the U.S. Census Bureau.
For additional context, it is worth noting that the national poverty level is estimated to sit at 13.4%.
Here are the five states with the highest levels of poverty today:
| Rank | State | Poverty Rate (2017) |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Mississippi | 19.8% |
| #2 | Louisiana | 19.7% |
| #3 | New Mexico | 19.7% |
| #4 | West Virginia | 19.1% |
| #5 | Kentucky | 17.2% |
In three southern states, Mississippi, Louisiana, and New Mexico, nearly 20% of the population lives below the poverty line. Two Appalachian states round out the top five: West Virginia (19.1%) and Kentucky (17.2%).
On the flipside, here are the five states with the lowest levels of poverty:
| Rank | State | Poverty Rate (2017) |
|---|---|---|
| #47 | Connecticut | 9.6% |
| #48 (t) | Minnesota | 9.5% |
| #48 (t) | Hawaii | 9.5% |
| #50 | Maryland | 9.3% |
| #51 | New Hampshire | 7.7% |
New Hampshire (7.7%) has the lowest poverty rate by a long shot – about 1.6% lower than its closest competitor, which is the state of Maryland (9.3%).
Poverty Rates Over Time
While the data from 2017 provides an interesting snapshot, perhaps it is more insightful to look at the trend over time. In other words, are poverty rates increasing or decreasing?
Below is a comparison of state averages in 2008 (pre-crisis), 2012 (recent peak), and 2017:
| 2008 | 2012 | 2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg. state poverty rate | 10.1% | 15.2% | 13.1% |
Since the recent peak in 2012, poverty has decreased by an average of 2.1% per state – in fact, over the 2012-2017 time period, there were only three states that did not see a reduction in poverty levels: Alaska, Delaware, and West Virginia.
Using the longer time window, however, you’ll see that poverty rates have actually risen by 3.0% on average since 2008. Today, not a single state has a lower poverty rate than it did in 2008.
State Poverty Rates (All)
Finally, here’s a full state table that is sortable and searchable, showing poverty levels in 2008, 2012, and 2017, for your convenience:
| 2008 | 2012 | 2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 13.1% | 19.0% | 16.9% |
| Alaska | 6.1% | 10.1% | 11.1% |
| Arizona | 12.6% | 18.7% | 14.9% |
| Arkansas | 14.6% | 19.8% | 16.4% |
| California | 11.2% | 17.0% | 13.3% |
| Colorado | 9.0% | 13.7% | 10.3% |
| Connecticut | 7.0% | 10.7% | 9.6% |
| Delaware | 7.6% | 12.0% | 13.6% |
| District of Columbia | 15.4% | 18.2% | 16.6% |
| Florida | 10.7% | 17.1% | 14.0% |
| Georgia | 12.4% | 19.2% | 14.9% |
| Hawaii | 5.8% | 11.6% | 9.5% |
| Idaho | 9.9% | 15.9% | 12.8% |
| Illinois | 10.0% | 14.7% | 12.6% |
| Indiana | 10.6% | 15.6% | 13.5% |
| Iowa | 7.9% | 12.7% | 10.7% |
| Kansas | 8.4% | 14.0% | 11.9% |
| Kentucky | 14.4% | 19.4% | 17.2% |
| Louisiana | 14.8% | 19.9% | 19.7% |
| Maine | 8.7% | 14.7% | 11.1% |
| Maryland | 5.7% | 10.3% | 9.3% |
| Massachusetts | 7.0% | 11.9% | 10.5% |
| Michigan | 11.5% | 17.4% | 14.2% |
| Minnesota | 6.5% | 11.4% | 9.5% |
| Mississippi | 19.0% | 24.2% | 19.8% |
| Missouri | 10.6% | 16.2% | 13.4% |
| Montana | 11.5% | 15.5% | 12.5% |
| Nebraska | 7.6% | 13.0% | 10.8% |
| Nevada | 9.0% | 16.4% | 13.0% |
| New Hampshire | 4.9% | 10.0% | 7.7% |
| New Jersey | 6.7% | 10.8% | 10.0% |
| New Mexico | 14.7% | 20.8% | 19.7% |
| New York | 11.1% | 15.9% | 14.1% |
| North Carolina | 12.0% | 18.0% | 14.7% |
| North Dakota | 8.6% | 11.2% | 10.3% |
| Ohio | 10.5% | 16.3% | 14.0% |
| Oklahoma | 13.2% | 17.2% | 15.8% |
| Oregon | 10.5% | 17.2% | 13.2% |
| Pennsylvania | 9.2% | 13.7% | 12.5% |
| Rhode Island | 8.3% | 13.7% | 11.6% |
| South Carolina | 13.0% | 18.3% | 15.4% |
| South Dakota | 9.7% | 13.4% | 13.0% |
| Tennessee | 12.9% | 17.9% | 15.0% |
| Texas | 14.1% | 17.9% | 14.7% |
| Utah | 6.9% | 12.8% | 9.7% |
| Vermont | 6.5% | 11.8% | 11.3% |
| Virginia | 7.9% | 11.7% | 10.6% |
| Washington | 8.4% | 13.5% | 11.0% |
| West Virginia | 13.1% | 17.8% | 19.1% |
| Wisconsin | 7.3% | 13.2% | 11.3% |
| Wyoming | 6.1% | 12.6% | 11.3% |
Money
Charted: Which City Has the Most Billionaires in 2024?
Just two countries account for half of the top 20 cities with the most billionaires. And the majority of the other half are found in Asia.
Charted: Which Country Has the Most Billionaires in 2024?
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Some cities seem to attract the rich. Take New York City for example, which has 340,000 high-net-worth residents with investable assets of more than $1 million.
But there’s a vast difference between being a millionaire and a billionaire. So where do the richest of them all live?
Using data from the Hurun Global Rich List 2024, we rank the top 20 cities with the highest number of billionaires in 2024.
A caveat to these rich lists: sources often vary on figures and exact rankings. For example, in last year’s reports, Forbes had New York as the city with the most billionaires, while the Hurun Global Rich List placed Beijing at the top spot.
Ranked: Top 20 Cities with the Most Billionaires in 2024
The Chinese economy’s doldrums over the course of the past year have affected its ultra-wealthy residents in key cities.
Beijing, the city with the most billionaires in 2023, has not only ceded its spot to New York, but has dropped to #4, overtaken by London and Mumbai.
| Rank | City | Billionaires | Rank Change YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇺🇸 New York | 119 | +1 |
| 2 | 🇬🇧 London | 97 | +3 |
| 3 | 🇮🇳 Mumbai | 92 | +4 |
| 4 | 🇨🇳 Beijing | 91 | -3 |
| 5 | 🇨🇳 Shanghai | 87 | -2 |
| 6 | 🇨🇳 Shenzhen | 84 | -2 |
| 7 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | 65 | -1 |
| 8 | 🇷🇺 Moscow | 59 | No Change |
| 9 | 🇮🇳 New Delhi | 57 | +6 |
| 10 | 🇺🇸 San Francisco | 52 | No Change |
| 11 | 🇹🇭 Bangkok | 49 | +2 |
| 12 | 🇹🇼 Taipei | 45 | +2 |
| 13 | 🇫🇷 Paris | 44 | -2 |
| 14 | 🇨🇳 Hangzhou | 43 | -5 |
| 15 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 42 | New to Top 20 |
| 16 | 🇨🇳 Guangzhou | 39 | -4 |
| 17T | 🇮🇩 Jakarta | 37 | +1 |
| 17T | 🇧🇷 Sao Paulo | 37 | No Change |
| 19T | 🇺🇸 Los Angeles | 31 | No Change |
| 19T | 🇰🇷 Seoul | 31 | -3 |
In fact all Chinese cities on the top 20 list have lost billionaires between 2023–24. Consequently, they’ve all lost ranking spots as well, with Hangzhou seeing the biggest slide (-5) in the top 20.
Where China lost, all other Asian cities—except Seoul—in the top 20 have gained ranks. Indian cities lead the way, with New Delhi (+6) and Mumbai (+3) having climbed the most.
At a country level, China and the U.S combine to make up half of the cities in the top 20. They are also home to about half of the world’s 3,200 billionaire population.
In other news of note: Hurun officially counts Taylor Swift as a billionaire, estimating her net worth at $1.2 billion.
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