Nearly Half of America’s Poor Are Younger Than Age 25
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In 2016, 44.3 million individuals in the United States lived in poverty.
This total is larger than the number of residents living in the 12 most populated states — California, Texas, New York, Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, New Jersey and Virginia — combined.
Equally startling: America’s youngest residents — anyone 24 years old or younger — account for nearly 50% of the nation’s poor (32% are children; 14% are young adults ages 18 to 24).
At the family level: Single-parent families are close to five times more likely to live in poverty than families with married parents. Nationwide, 5.8 million families with related children — 16% of all families — lived in poverty in 2016.
The federal poverty line is consistent across the country, but varies according to household size and income. For instance: In 2016, two adults and two children lived in poverty if their annual household income was $24,339 or less.
Access economic well-being data on the KIDS COUNT Data Center:
- Population in poverty
- Families with related children that are below poverty by family type
- Children in extreme poverty
- Children in poverty
- Children in poverty by race and ethnicity
- Children in poverty by age group
- Children in poverty by age group and by race and ethnicity
- Children below 150% poverty
- Children below 200% poverty
- Persons ages 18 to 24 in poverty