What percentage of Americans are living in poverty in 2025?

1. Official headline: the Census Bureau’s “official” rate fell to 10.6% in 2024

The single number most outlets cite for “Americans in poverty” is the Census Bureau’s official poverty rate; the bureau’s Poverty in the United States: 2024 report shows the official poverty rate at 10.6 percent for calendar year 2024 ^[1]. Media and analysts frequently use that official rate as the year-to-year headline because it is the long-standing, consistent series produced from the Current Population Survey ASEC ^[1].

2. An alternative gauge: the Supplemental Poverty Measure is higher (about 12.9%)

The Census Bureau also publishes the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM), which counts different income components (taxes, in-kind benefits, and regional housing costs) and usually shows a different level. In 2024 the SPM was about 12.9 percent — 2.3 percentage points above the official rate — according to the bureau’s analysis ^[2]. Researchers and advocates often point to the SPM when they want a measure that reflects policy impacts and local costs ^[2].

3. Why two numbers matter: different definitions and policy implications

The official poverty measure and the SPM are not competing “errors” but different tools: the official rate uses a fixed threshold and cash income definitions that enable long historical comparisons, while the SPM adjusts thresholds for housing costs and counts benefits such as SNAP and tax credits differently ^[2]. Which rate is used affects perceptions of how well anti-poverty programs work: the SPM can show that government programs lift more people above poverty than the official measure implies ^[2].

4. What about 2025 specifically? Reporting covers 2024 data collected in 2025

Available sources report 2024 poverty estimates based on data collected in 2025 CPS ASEC supplements; the Census Bureau product titled “Poverty in the United States: 2024” and related newsroom pieces present the 2024 official (10.6%) and SPM (12.9%) figures ^{[1] [2]}. Available sources do not provide a separate, finalized national poverty rate for calendar year 2025 itself in the materials supplied here; they instead present 2024 estimates published in 2025 ^{[1] [2]}.

5. Regional and state context — poverty varies widely across states

State-level poverty rates differ substantially: state rankings and recent compilations show some states with rates under 10% and others well above the national average — for example, several data sites and compilations list states with rates below 10% while others like Mississippi and Louisiana report much higher rates in the mid-to-high teens ^{[3] [4]}. The Census recommends multi-year averages for reliable state estimates, which the 2025 bureau analysis uses for state comparisons ^[2].

6. Complementary metrics: poverty counts, federal guidelines, and wage context

Beyond rates, analysts track the number of people in poverty, federal poverty guidelines used for eligibility, and benchmarks like the federal minimum wage. The Census reported millions of people in poverty in prior years, and HHS poverty guidelines (FPL) for 2025 set numeric thresholds (e.g., $15,650 for an individual in the contiguous U.S.) that are used for program eligibility ^{[5] [6]}. Policy groups note that at the federal minimum wage a full-time worker’s earnings fall below the FPL, a point used in debates over wage and benefit policy ^[7].

7. Competing interpretations and policy stakes

Different organizations emphasize different measures. Policy advocates and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities emphasize how programs such as SNAP, rental assistance, and tax credits lift people above poverty and warn that cuts would raise poverty and hardship ^[8]. Others or media outlets may emphasize the official rate’s long-term comparability when making cross-year comparisons ^[1]. The choice of metric reflects an implicit agenda: advocates want to show program impact (favoring the SPM), while others emphasize continuity and historical trends (favoring the official measure) ^{[2] [8]}.

8. Bottom line and what is not in these sources

For a concise answer based on the provided reporting: the Census Bureau’s official poverty rate was 10.6% for 2024 (reported in 2025), and the Supplemental Poverty Measure was about 12.9% for 2024 ^{[1] [2]}. Available sources do not provide a distinct, finalized national poverty percentage specifically for calendar year 2025 in the documents you supplied; they instead report 2024 estimates and related 2025 poverty guidelines and analyses ^{[1] [5]}.