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

Counties in Alabama by poverty rate

Perry County had the highest poverty rate of 67 counties in 2023, at 33.8%. Shelby County had the lowest, at 8.4%. The median was 17.5% and the figure for Alabama was 15.7%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest33.8Perry County
Lowest8.4Shelby County
Median17.567 counties
Alabama15.7History

Top 40 counties, 2023

CSVChart (SVG)

Perry CountyPerry County: 33.8 %33.8Bullock CountyBullock County: 33.6 %33.6Sumter CountySumter County: 33.5 %33.5Wilcox CountyWilcox County: 32.7 %32.7Dallas CountyDallas County: 31.4 %31.4Greene CountyGreene County: 31 %31Lowndes CountyLowndes County: 29.4 %29.4Macon CountyMacon County: 28.8 %28.8Conecuh CountyConecuh County: 26.5 %26.5Barbour CountyBarbour County: 25.5 %25.5Choctaw CountyChoctaw County: 24.8 %24.8Pike CountyPike County: 23.8 %23.8Butler CountyButler County: 23.6 %23.6Marengo CountyMarengo County: 23.5 %23.5Hale CountyHale County: 23 %23Franklin CountyFranklin County: 22.5 %22.5DeKalb CountyDeKalb County: 21.6 %21.6Pickens CountyPickens County: 21.5 %21.5Escambia CountyEscambia County: 21.3 %21.3Calhoun CountyCalhoun County: 20.1 %20.1Etowah CountyEtowah County: 19.6 %19.6Crenshaw CountyCrenshaw County: 19.5 %19.5Bibb CountyBibb County: 19.4 %19.4Geneva CountyGeneva County: 19.2 %19.2Tuscaloosa CountyTuscaloosa County: 19.2 %19.2Monroe CountyMonroe County: 19.1 %19.1Clarke CountyClarke County: 19 %19Marion CountyMarion County: 19 %19Russell CountyRussell County: 18.9 %18.9Washington CountyWashington County: 18.7 %18.7Montgomery CountyMontgomery County: 18.3 %18.3Coosa CountyCoosa County: 18.2 %18.2Lee CountyLee County: 17.9 %17.9Walker CountyWalker County: 17.5 %17.5Chambers CountyChambers County: 17.1 %17.1Talladega CountyTalladega County: 17 %17Clay CountyClay County: 16.9 %16.9Covington CountyCovington County: 16.7 %16.7Dale CountyDale County: 16.6 %16.6Winston CountyWinston County: 16.6 %16.6
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCounties2023 (%)Change on 2022
1Perry County33.8-2.1 pts
2Bullock County33.6+2.1 pts
3Sumter County33.5+2.4 pts
4Wilcox County32.7+3 pts
5Dallas County31.4-1.5 pts
6Greene County31+1 pts
7Lowndes County29.40 pts
8Macon County28.8-3.6 pts
9Conecuh County26.5-3.6 pts
10Barbour County25.5-1.2 pts
11Choctaw County24.8+4.1 pts
12Pike County23.8-3.6 pts
13Butler County23.6+0.2 pts
14Marengo County23.5+4 pts
15Hale County23+0.1 pts
16Franklin County22.5+4 pts
17DeKalb County21.6+2.9 pts
18Pickens County21.5-2.4 pts
19Escambia County21.3+0.4 pts
20Calhoun County20.1+1.6 pts
21Etowah County19.6+1.9 pts
22Crenshaw County19.5-2 pts
23Bibb County19.4-0.6 pts
24Geneva County19.2+0.6 pts
24Tuscaloosa County19.2+2.2 pts
26Monroe County19.1-1.6 pts
27Clarke County19-4.5 pts
27Marion County19+1.4 pts
29Russell County18.9-3.4 pts
30Washington County18.7+2 pts
31Montgomery County18.3-0.1 pts
32Coosa County18.2+0.1 pts
33Lee County17.9+2.9 pts
34Walker County17.5+0.8 pts
35Chambers County17.1-3.9 pts
36Talladega County17-1.3 pts
37Clay County16.9-0.1 pts
38Covington County16.7-2.5 pts
39Dale County16.6-3.9 pts
39Winston County16.6-1.7 pts
41Coffee County16.5+0.8 pts
41Houston County16.5-0.7 pts
41Marshall County16.50 pts
44Henry County16.4+0.6 pts
44Lamar County16.4-1.7 pts
46Mobile County16.3-2.9 pts
47Fayette County16.2-3.3 pts
48Jackson County16-0.1 pts
48Jefferson County16-0.4 pts
50Randolph County15.9-4.4 pts
51Cleburne County15.8+0.1 pts
52Cherokee County15.6+0.1 pts
53Cullman County15.5-0.7 pts
54Colbert County15.4-1.9 pts
55Chilton County15.3-0.5 pts
56Tallapoosa County15.1-2.5 pts
57Lawrence County14.2-2.2 pts
58Lauderdale County13.6+0.3 pts
59Blount County12.8-0.8 pts
60Elmore County12.5+0.8 pts
61Morgan County12-1.1 pts
62Autauga County11.7-0.1 pts
63St. Clair County10.8-1.8 pts
64Madison County10.5-0.8 pts
65Baldwin County10-2.4 pts
66Limestone County8.6-1.3 pts
67Shelby County8.4+1.6 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/2023/2023-state-and-county/est23all.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?

Perry County, with 33.8% in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest poverty rate?

Shelby County, with 8.4% in 2023.

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