What is the poverty rate in Maryland?
Updated monthly
About 9.1% of Maryland’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, 555,770 people in Maryland were considered in poverty.
9.1%
of the population (2024)
556K
people living under the poverty line (2024)
Based on data from the American Community Survey dating back to 2010, Maryland's poverty rate hit a peak in 2012 of 10.3%. Its lowest point was in 2018 at 9%. The state's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 0.4 percentage point higher than the previous year.
In 2024, 9.1% of Maryland 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, 555,770 people living in Maryland were in poverty — down 10.1% from the 2021 peak of 618,372.
In 2024, 555,800 people in Maryland 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 Maryland decreased from 13% to 10.6%. During the same period, the poverty rate for adults under 65 years decreased from 9.6% to 8.2%. For those older than 65, the poverty rate increased from 7.4% to 10%.
In 2024, 10.6% of children in Maryland were living under the poverty line.
Poverty rate by age group
Among racial or ethnic groups in Maryland during 2024, four had a higher poverty rate than the state’s overall rate: American Indian and Alaska Native, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino origin (of any race), and some other race.
Four groups had a lower than average poverty rate: Asian; Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander; two or more races; 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 13.2% in 2014 to 9% in 2024.
In Maryland, the poverty rate for the two or more races population decreased from 13.2% in 2014 to 9.0% in 2024.
Poverty rate by race or ethnicity
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Maryland counties ranged from 4% in Calvert County to 20.1% in Somerset County. The poverty rate in the state’s largest county — Montgomery County — was 7.1%.
In 2019-2023, the poverty rate among Maryland counties ranged from 4.0% to 20.1%.
Poverty rate
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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.
