Data / Rankings / Poverty rate (US official measure) / Counties in Alabama

Counties in Alabama by poverty rate

Sumter County had the highest poverty rate of 67 counties in 2019, at 36.4%. Shelby County had the lowest, at 6.2%. The median was 17.2% and the figure for Alabama was 15.6%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest36.4Sumter County
Lowest6.2Shelby County
Median17.267 counties
Alabama15.6History

Top 40 counties, 2019

CSVChart (SVG)

Sumter CountySumter County: 36.4 %36.4Perry CountyPerry County: 33.9 %33.9Wilcox CountyWilcox County: 32.5 %32.5Greene CountyGreene County: 31.7 %31.7Bullock CountyBullock County: 30 %30Macon CountyMacon County: 29.3 %29.3Barbour CountyBarbour County: 27.1 %27.1Lowndes CountyLowndes County: 26.6 %26.6Dallas CountyDallas County: 26 %26Marengo CountyMarengo County: 24.8 %24.8Pickens CountyPickens County: 24.3 %24.3Monroe CountyMonroe County: 23.3 %23.3Choctaw CountyChoctaw County: 22.6 %22.6Conecuh CountyConecuh County: 22.2 %22.2Pike CountyPike County: 21.8 %21.8Butler CountyButler County: 21.6 %21.6Escambia CountyEscambia County: 20.5 %20.5Hale CountyHale County: 20.5 %20.5Bibb CountyBibb County: 20.3 %20.3Chambers CountyChambers County: 19.6 %19.6Houston CountyHouston County: 19.4 %19.4Russell CountyRussell County: 18.9 %18.9Etowah CountyEtowah County: 18.8 %18.8Washington CountyWashington County: 18.6 %18.6Clarke CountyClarke County: 18.4 %18.4DeKalb CountyDeKalb County: 18.2 %18.2Dale CountyDale County: 18.1 %18.1Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 17.7 %17.7Mobile CountyMobile County: 17.7 %17.7Randolph CountyRandolph County: 17.5 %17.5Talladega CountyTalladega County: 17.4 %17.4Walker CountyWalker County: 17.3 %17.3Calhoun CountyCalhoun County: 17.2 %17.2Covington CountyCovington County: 17.2 %17.2Henry CountyHenry County: 17.2 %17.2Coosa CountyCoosa County: 17.1 %17.1Fayette CountyFayette County: 17 %17Marion CountyMarion County: 16.9 %16.9Crenshaw CountyCrenshaw County: 16.8 %16.8Winston CountyWinston County: 16.7 %16.7
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCounties2019 (%)Change on 2018
1Sumter County36.4+1.7 pts
2Perry County33.9-1.4 pts
3Wilcox County32.5-0.9 pts
4Greene County31.7+1.6 pts
5Bullock County30-12.5 pts
6Macon County29.3-0.9 pts
7Barbour County27.1-3.8 pts
8Lowndes County26.6+1.5 pts
9Dallas County26-5.4 pts
10Marengo County24.8+0.8 pts
11Pickens County24.3+1.2 pts
12Monroe County23.3+1.4 pts
13Choctaw County22.6+0.5 pts
14Conecuh County22.2-2.2 pts
15Pike County21.8-1.8 pts
16Butler County21.6-2.9 pts
17Escambia County20.5-3.1 pts
17Hale County20.5-5.1 pts
19Bibb County20.3-1.5 pts
20Chambers County19.6+0.9 pts
21Houston County19.4+2.9 pts
22Russell County18.9-2.8 pts
23Etowah County18.8+1.3 pts
24Washington County18.6+1 pts
25Clarke County18.4-4.4 pts
26DeKalb County18.2-3.1 pts
27Dale County18.1+1.9 pts
28Lawrence County17.7-1.6 pts
28Mobile County17.7-3.1 pts
30Randolph County17.5-2.2 pts
31Talladega County17.4-1.9 pts
32Walker County17.3-0.6 pts
33Calhoun County17.2-2.3 pts
33Covington County17.2-2.7 pts
33Henry County17.2-0.7 pts
36Coosa County17.1-1.8 pts
37Fayette County17-6.5 pts
38Marion County16.9-3.3 pts
39Crenshaw County16.8-2.7 pts
40Winston County16.7-1.9 pts
41Clay County16.6-1 pts
42Blount County16.3+3.1 pts
43Jefferson County16.2+0.1 pts
43Tuscaloosa County16.2-0.6 pts
45Franklin County16.1-3.1 pts
45Geneva County16.1-5.2 pts
47Chilton County16-1.3 pts
47Tallapoosa County16-3.7 pts
49Cherokee County15.9-0.4 pts
50Montgomery County15.8-4.3 pts
51Lauderdale County15.7+1.7 pts
51Marshall County15.7-2.6 pts
53Lee County15.5-3.5 pts
54Lamar County15.3-2.1 pts
55Coffee County15+1.2 pts
56Jackson County14.7-5 pts
57Colbert County14.6+0.8 pts
58Morgan County13.7+0.5 pts
59Cleburne County13.3-2.7 pts
60Cullman County12.2-2.3 pts
61Autauga County12.1-1.7 pts
62Limestone County12+0.6 pts
63Madison County11.5-0.4 pts
64Elmore County11.4+0.2 pts
65St. Clair County11.2-0.8 pts
66Baldwin County10.1+0.3 pts
67Shelby County6.2-1.8 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

People living in families or alone with income below the official US poverty thresholds, as a percentage of people whose poverty status can be determined. United States: Census Bureau Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE), all ages.

Absolute thresholds set by the US government, so not comparable with the EU at_risk_of_poverty_rate.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE): percent of people of all ages in poverty, states and counties. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/saipe/datasets/2019/2019-state-and-county/est19all.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Rank Counties in Alabama by poverty rate using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest poverty rate?

Sumter County, with 36.4% in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest poverty rate?

Shelby County, with 6.2% in 2019.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE): percent of people of all ages in poverty, states and counties. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Poverty rate (US official measure): other rankings

Counties in Alabama: more rankings