Racial poverty gap statistics show substantial differences in poverty rates across racial and Hispanic-origin groups in the United States. In 2025, the official poverty rate was 17.3% for Black alone people and 7.7% for Asian alone people, while the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) rates were 20.3% and 12.8%, respectively. These are U.S. Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement estimates for calendar-year 2025, with population as of March 2026.
Contents
- How to read these racial poverty statistics
- Official poverty rates by race and Hispanic origin
- Child poverty rates
- Working-age poverty rates
- Older-adult poverty rates
- Supplemental Poverty Measure rates
- Supplemental child poverty rates
How to read these racial poverty statistics
The official poverty measure and the Supplemental Poverty Measure are separate measures. They should not be compared as interchangeable definitions. The official estimates in this article come from the Census Bureau’s Table 3. Poverty Status of People by Age, Race, and Hispanic Origin Using the Official Poverty Measure: 1959 to 2025. The SPM estimates come from Table 8. Number and Percentage of People in Poverty Using the Supplemental Poverty Measure by Age, Race, and Hispanic Origin: 2009 to 2025.
Race categories below follow the Census table labels. Hispanic origin may overlap race categories, so “Hispanic (any race)” is not a mutually exclusive racial category. The figures are estimates for calendar-year 2025, not forecasts. The Census workbooks report population in thousands and SPM margins of error; the percentages below use the reported rates.
Official poverty rates by race and Hispanic origin
The official poverty measure placed the 2025 rate at 9% for White alone people and 7.5% for White alone, not Hispanic people. The rate was 17% for Black alone or in combination people and 17.3% for Black alone people. Thus, the Black-alone rate was reported at nearly twice the White-alone rate under this measure.
Other reported 2025 official rates were 7.4% for Asian alone or in combination people and 7.7% for Asian alone people. The rate was 14.7% for American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination people and 16.7% for American Indian and Alaska Native alone people. For people identified as Two or More Races, the rate was 11.5%. The rate for Hispanic people of any race was 13.9%.
| Group | Official poverty rate, 2025 |
|---|---|
| White alone | 9% |
| White alone, not Hispanic | 7.5% |
| Black alone or in combination | 17% |
| Black alone | 17.3% |
| Asian alone or in combination | 7.4% |
| Asian alone | 7.7% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination | 14.7% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 16.7% |
| Two or More Races | 11.5% |
| Hispanic (any race) | 13.9% |
These rates describe the full population categories in the 2025 official-poverty table. They do not by themselves explain why rates differ, and they should not be treated as individual risk predictions.
Child poverty rates
Among children under 18, official poverty rates were higher than the corresponding all-age rates for several groups. The rate was 11.5% for White alone children and 8.5% for White alone, not Hispanic children. Black alone or in combination children had a rate of 22.7%, while Black alone children had a rate of 24.1%.
Asian children had the lowest reported child rates among the listed categories: 6.7% for Asian alone or in combination and 7.6% for Asian alone. The rate was 13.9% for American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination children and 16.1% for American Indian and Alaska Native alone children. Two or More Races children had a rate of 13%, and Hispanic children of any race had a rate of 17.8%.
The child figures make the age dimension of the racial poverty gap visible. For example, the official rate for Black alone children was 24.1%, compared with 14.1% for Black alone people ages 18 to 64 and 19.1% for Black alone people age 65 and over. Those are separate age groups, not measures of the same population.
Working-age poverty rates
For people ages 18 to 64, the official poverty rate was 8.3% for White alone people and 7.2% for White alone, not Hispanic people. It was 13.9% for Black alone or in combination people and 14.1% for Black alone people.
The rate for Asian alone or in combination working-age people was 7.1%, as was the rate for Asian alone people. American Indian and Alaska Native people ages 18 to 64 had a rate of 14.2% when counted alone or in combination and 16.6% when counted alone. The rate was 9.6% for Two or More Races people and 11.7% for Hispanic people of any race.
Compared with the all-age official rates, the working-age rate was lower for White alone people, at 8.3% versus 9%, and for Black alone people, at 14.1% versus 17.3%. The age-specific comparison is useful, but each rate still represents a distinct population definition.
Older-adult poverty rates
For people age 65 and over, the official poverty rate was 8.3% for White alone people and 7.3% for White alone, not Hispanic people. The rate was 19% for Black alone or in combination people and 19.1% for Black alone people.
Asian older adults had rates of 10.5% for alone or in combination and 10.8% for alone. The rate was 17.9% for American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination older adults and 18.1% for those identified as alone. Two or More Races older adults had a rate of 15.1%, while Hispanic older adults of any race had a rate of 17.1%.
The older-adult estimates show that the gap is not limited to children or working-age adults. The reported 19.1% official rate for Black alone older adults was 11.8 percentage points above the 7.3% rate for White alone, not Hispanic older adults. This is a direct comparison of the two reported age-and-origin categories, not an estimate of a causal difference.
Supplemental Poverty Measure rates
The SPM includes a different measurement framework from the official poverty measure. Under the 2025 SPM, the rate was 11.8% for White alone people and 9.2% for White alone, not Hispanic people. It was 19.5% for Black alone or in combination people and 20.3% for Black alone people.
The SPM rate was 12.2% for Asian alone or in combination people and 12.8% for Asian alone people. For American Indian and Alaska Native people, the rate was 15.2% for alone or in combination and 18.1% for alone. The rate was 12.5% for Two or More Races people and 20% for Hispanic people of any race.
| Group | Official measure | SPM |
|---|---|---|
| White alone | 9% | 11.8% |
| White alone, not Hispanic | 7.5% | 9.2% |
| Black alone or in combination | 17% | 19.5% |
| Black alone | 17.3% | 20.3% |
| Asian alone or in combination | 7.4% | 12.2% |
| Asian alone | 7.7% | 12.8% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination | 14.7% | 15.2% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone | 16.7% | 18.1% |
| Two or More Races | 11.5% | 12.5% |
| Hispanic (any race) | 13.9% | 20% |
The two measures produce different levels for the same labeled group. For example, the reported Black alone rate was 17.3% under the official measure and 20.3% under the SPM. That difference does not mean one percentage replaces the other; it reflects the fact that the measures use separate definitions.
Supplemental child poverty rates
The 2025 SPM rate for White alone children under 18 was 11.9%, while the rate for White alone, not Hispanic children was 7.7%. Black alone or in combination children had an SPM rate of 20%, and Black alone children had a rate of 22%.
The SPM rate was 10.1% for Asian alone or in combination children and 11.9% for Asian alone children. For American Indian and Alaska Native children, the rate was 10.1% for alone or in combination and 11% for alone. Two or More Races children had an SPM rate of 11%, and Hispanic children of any race had a rate of 19.5%.
The official and SPM child rates should be read as parallel measurements, not interchangeable totals. For Black alone children, the official rate was 24.1% and the SPM rate was 22%. For Hispanic children of any race, the official rate was 17.8% and the SPM rate was 19.5%. These paired figures illustrate why the poverty measure and the population definition both matter when interpreting racial poverty gap statistics.