Persistently elevated AIAN, Black, and Hispanic child poverty rates have thwarted progress reducing overall child poverty in the U.S.: Child poverty rates, by race and ethnicity, 1974–2024
| Year | All | White | Black | Hispanic | AIAN | Asian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 15.4% | 9.5% | 39.8% | |||
| 1975 | 17.1% | 10.8% | 41.7% | |||
| 1976 | 16.0% | 9.8% | 40.6% | 30.2% | ||
| 1977 | 16.2% | 9.9% | 41.8% | 28.3% | ||
| 1978 | 15.9% | 9.6% | 41.5% | 27.6% | ||
| 1979 | 16.4% | 10.1% | 41.2% | 28.0% | ||
| 1980 | 18.3% | 11.8% | 42.3% | 33.2% | ||
| 1981 | 20.0% | 12.9% | 45.2% | 35.9% | ||
| 1982 | 21.9% | 14.4% | 47.6% | 39.5% | ||
| 1983 | 22.3% | 14.8% | 46.7% | 38.1% | ||
| 1984 | 21.5% | 13.7% | 46.6% | 39.2% | ||
| 1985 | 20.7% | 12.8% | 43.6% | 40.3% | ||
| 1986 | 20.5% | 13.0% | 43.1% | 37.7% | ||
| 1987 | 20.3% | 11.8% | 45.1% | 39.3% | 23.5% | |
| 1988 | 19.5% | 11.0% | 43.5% | 37.6% | 24.1% | |
| 1989 | 19.6% | 11.5% | 43.7% | 36.2% | 36.0% | 19.8% |
| 1990 | 20.6% | 12.3% | 44.8% | 38.4% | 36.2% | 17.6% |
| 1991 | 21.8% | 13.1% | 45.9% | 40.4% | 37.6% | 17.5% |
| 1992 | 22.3% | 13.2% | 46.6% | 40.0% | 39.6% | 16.4% |
| 1993 | 22.7% | 13.6% | 46.1% | 40.9% | 38.3% | 18.2% |
| 1994 | 21.8% | 12.5% | 43.8% | 41.5% | 36.1% | 18.3% |
| 1995 | 20.8% | 11.2% | 41.9% | 40.0% | 37.5% | 19.5% |
| 1996 | 20.5% | 11.1% | 39.9% | 40.3% | 40.4% | 19.5% |
| 1997 | 19.9% | 11.4% | 37.2% | 36.8% | 40.2% | 20.3% |
| 1998 | 18.9% | 10.6% | 36.7% | 34.4% | 38.0% | 18.0% |
| 1999 | 17.1% | 9.4% | 33.2% | 30.3% | 36.9% | 11.9% |
| 2000 | 16.2% | 9.1% | 31.2% | 28.4% | 34.2% | 12.7% |
| 2001 | 16.3% | 9.5% | 30.2% | 28.0% | 32.2% | 11.5% |
| 2002 | 16.7% | 9.4% | 32.3% | 28.6% | 30.2% | 11.7% |
| 2003 | 17.6% | 9.8% | 34.1% | 29.7% | 30.8% | 12.5% |
| 2004 | 17.8% | 10.5% | 33.7% | 28.9% | 31.0% | 9.9% |
| 2005 | 17.6% | 10.0% | 34.5% | 28.3% | 30.9% | 11.1% |
| 2006 | 17.4% | 10.0% | 33.4% | 26.9% | 33.8% | 12.2% |
| 2007 | 18.0% | 10.1% | 34.5% | 28.6% | 32.5% | 12.5% |
| 2008 | 19.0% | 10.6% | 34.7% | 30.6% | 34.0% | 14.6% |
| 2009 | 20.7% | 11.9% | 35.7% | 33.1% | 32.8% | 14.0% |
| 2010 | 22.0% | 12.3% | 39.0% | 34.9% | 37.1% | 14.4% |
| 2011 | 21.9% | 12.5% | 38.8% | 34.1% | 37.5% | 13.5% |
| 2012 | 21.8% | 12.3% | 37.9% | 33.8% | 40.8% | 13.8% |
| 2013 | 20.7% | 12.1% | 36.0% | 31.7% | 38.7% | 12.4% |
| 2014 | 21.1% | 12.3% | 37.1% | 31.9% | 37.8% | 14.0% |
| 2015 | 19.7% | 12.1% | 32.9% | 28.9% | 33.0% | 12.3% |
| 2016 | 18.0% | 10.8% | 30.8% | 26.6% | 30.5% | 11.1% |
| 2017 | 17.5% | 10.6% | 29.7% | 25.0% | 28.1% | 10.9% |
| 2018 | 16.2% | 8.9% | 29.5% | 23.7% | 27.2% | 11.3% |
| 2019 | 14.4% | 8.3% | 26.4% | 20.9% | 25.9% | 7.3% |
| 2020 | 16.0% | 9.9% | 27.6% | 23.1% | 25.0% | 8.4% |
| 2021 | 15.3% | 8.8% | 27.3% | 22.4% | 25.5% | 8.8% |
| 2022 | 15.0% | 9.7% | 22.3% | 21.7% | 30.7% | 8.8% |
| 2023 | 15.3% | 8.7% | 25.0% | 22.5% | 31.8% | 11.6% |
| 2024 | 14.3% | 8.2% | 25.4% | 20.2% | 30.5% | 6.4% |
Notes: AIAN refers to American Indian and Alaska Native. All race categories are single race and do not distinguish Hispanic ethnicity from non-Hispanic ethnicity, except for white, which is exclusive of Hispanic ethnicity (i.e., non-Hispanic white alone, Black alone, AIAN alone, and Asian alone). Hispanic can be of any race. AIAN data are 3-year pooled averages to account for sample size restrictions. Please see Appendix Table 1 for 1-year estimates.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey Poverty in the United States, Table A-3.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey–Annual Social and Economic Supplements 1959 to 2024. “Table A-3. Poverty Status of People by Age, Race, and Hispanic Origin: 1959 to 2024” (Excel table) from Poverty in the United States: 2024, September 2025.