The Gender Gap in Poverty Rates in the United States

The U.S. Census Bureau recently released its annual report on poverty in the United States. The data shows that in 2023, 11.9 percent of all women and girls in the United States lived in poverty. This was up from 12.5 percent in 2022. For all males, the poverty rate in 2023 was 10.2 percent, down from 10.5 percent in 2022.

In 2023, only 4.6 percent of married-couple families lived in poverty. For families headed by a single man, 11.4 percent of all families were poor. But for families headed by a single woman, 21.8 percent of all families were poor. There were more 11.3 million people living below the poverty line in families headed by a single woman, including more than 6 million children.

Some 20.5 percent of adult women who lived alone were poor in 2023. For adult men living alone, 17.9 percent were poor.

Overall, there were more than 20 million American women and girls who were living below the poverty level in 2023. Obviously, these women living in poverty have major disadvantages in access to higher education, a path that might provide them a way out of poverty.