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

Counties in Maine by poverty rate

Aroostook County had the highest poverty rate of 16 counties in 2020, at 15.3%. York County had the lowest, at 8.1%. The median was 11.6% and the figure for Maine was 10.6%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest15.3Aroostook County
Lowest8.1York County
Median11.616 counties
Maine10.6History

All counties, 2020

CSVChart (SVG)

Aroostook CountyAroostook County: 15.3 %15.3Piscataquis CountyPiscataquis County: 14.6 %14.6Somerset CountySomerset County: 14.5 %14.5Oxford CountyOxford County: 13 %13Franklin CountyFranklin County: 12.9 %12.9Penobscot CountyPenobscot County: 12.1 %12.1Washington CountyWashington County: 12 %12Androscoggin CountyAndroscoggin County: 11.7 %11.7Waldo CountyWaldo County: 11.6 %11.6Kennebec CountyKennebec County: 11.2 %11.2Hancock CountyHancock County: 10.3 %10.3Knox CountyKnox County: 10.2 %10.2Sagadahoc CountySagadahoc County: 9.2 %9.2Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 8.8 %8.8Cumberland CountyCumberland County: 8.6 %8.6York CountyYork County: 8.1 %8.1
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCounties2020 (%)Change on 2019
1Aroostook County15.3-0.2 pts
2Piscataquis County14.6-1.9 pts
3Somerset County14.5-3.8 pts
4Oxford County130 pts
5Franklin County12.9+0.3 pts
6Penobscot County12.1-0.3 pts
7Washington County12-7.6 pts
8Androscoggin County11.7+1.3 pts
9Waldo County11.6-2.1 pts
10Kennebec County11.2-0.3 pts
11Hancock County10.3-0.3 pts
12Knox County10.2-0.7 pts
13Sagadahoc County9.2+0.6 pts
14Lincoln County8.8-2.2 pts
15Cumberland County8.6+0.8 pts
16York County8.1+0.2 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/2020/2020-state-and-county/est20all.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Maine by poverty rate using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"poverty_rate","level":"province","within":"Maine","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=poverty_rate&level=province&within=Maine&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest poverty rate?

Aroostook County, with 15.3% in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest poverty rate?

York County, with 8.1% in 2020.

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 Maine: more rankings