What is the poverty rate in Indiana?
Updated monthly
About 12.2% of Indiana’s population in 2024. The poverty rate is the percentage of people whose household income falls below the poverty threshold set by the government. It measures the percentage of people in households that don’t earn enough to pay for basic needs like food, housing, and healthcare. In 2024, 823,667 people in Indiana were considered in poverty.
12.2%
of the population (2024)
824K
people living under the poverty line (2024)
Based on data from the American Community Survey dating back to 2010, Indiana's poverty rate hit a peak in 2011 of 16%. Its lowest point was in 2019 at 11.9%. The state's poverty rate was 12.2% in 2024, 0.1 percentage point lower than the previous year.
In 2024, 12.2% of Indiana population were living under the poverty line.
Poverty rate
While the poverty rate shows the overall trend, the total number matters because many aid programs and funding decisions are based on how many people are in poverty, not just the percentage. In 2024, 823,667 people living in Indiana were in poverty — down 18.9% from the 2013 peak of 1,015,127.
In 2024, 823,700 people in Indiana were in poverty.
People living under poverty line
Poverty doesn’t affect all groups equally. Rates vary widely by demographic group, family type and location.
From 2014 to 2024, the poverty rate for children under 18 in Indiana decreased from 21.5% to 16.4%. During the same period, the poverty rate for adults under 65 years decreased from 14.7% to 11.4%. For those older than 65, the poverty rate increased from 7% to 9.7%.
In 2024, 16.4% of children in Indiana were living under the poverty line.
Poverty rate by age group
Among racial or ethnic groups in Indiana during 2024, five had a higher poverty rate than the state’s overall rate: Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino origin (of any race), some other race, and two or more races.
Three groups had a lower than average poverty rate: American Indian and Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, and White alone, not Hispanic or Latino.
Over the previous ten years, the poverty rate for the two or more races population shifted the most, decreasing from 29% in 2014 to 15.9% in 2024.
In Indiana, the poverty rate for the two or more races population decreased from 29.0% in 2014 to 15.9% in 2024.
Poverty rate by race or ethnicity
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Indiana counties ranged from 4.3% in Hamilton County to 23.8% in Crawford County. The poverty rate in the state’s largest county — Marion County — was 15.1%.
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Indiana counties ranged from 4.3% to 23.8%.
Poverty rate
Keep exploring
Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
