Census ACS 5-Year · 500 counties
US Counties With Lowest Poverty Rates
The US counties with the lowest poverty rates are typically wealthy suburbs of major metropolitan areas, where high educational attainment, professional employment, and elevated home values combine to produce broadly shared prosperity. Counties like Loudoun (VA), Howard (MD), and Hunterdon (NJ) routinely rank near the top, with poverty rates below 5%. These low-poverty counties tend to have excellent schools, lower crime, and well-funded public services, but also extreme housing costs that filter out lower-income residents.
Key Findings
- 1Burke County, ND leads with a poverty rate of 0.7%, followed by Mason County, TX (0.8%) and Kent County, TX (1.1%).
- 2The gap between #1 Burke County, ND and #500 Douglas County, NV (5.5%) is 4.8 percentage points.
- 3The national median across all states is 4.4% (Denton County, TX at the midpoint).
- 4The top 10 states are: Burke County, ND, Mason County, TX, Kent County, TX, Gove County, KS, Sterling County, TX, Crockett County, TX, Nantucket County, MA, Hemphill County, TX, Stanley County, SD, Bristol Bay Borough, AK.
Full Ranking: US Counties With Lowest Poverty Rates
Source: Census ACS 5-Year Estimates
Methodology
Rankings are based on American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates from the US Census Bureau. All 50 states and the District of Columbia are included. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides detailed demographic, social, economic, and housing data. 5-Year estimates offer the most reliable data for state-level comparisons by averaging responses over a 60-month period. Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Burke County, ND has the highest poverty rate at 0.7%, according to latest Census ACS data. Mason County, TX and Kent County, TX round out the top three.
Douglas County, NV has the lowest poverty rate at 5.5%. Coweta County, GA is second-lowest at 5.5%.
The median across all 500 states is 4.4%. Note that the national median and the state-level median are calculated differently, the state median represents the midpoint when all states are ranked.
This data comes from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates published by the US Census Bureau. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides the most comprehensive demographic data available between decennial censuses.
Rankings are based on the latest available Census ACS 5-Year estimates. The Census Bureau releases new ACS data annually. Our data was last updated on April 12, 2026.
Rankings are based on American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates from the US Census Bureau. All 50 states and the District of Columbia are included. The ACS surveys approximately 3.5 million households annually and provides detailed demographic, social, economic, and housing data. 5-Year estimates offer the most reliable data for state-level comparisons by averaging responses over a 60-month period. Percentages may not sum to 100% due to rounding.