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

Counties in New Jersey by poverty rate

Cumberland County had the highest poverty rate of 21 counties in 2017, at 18.4%. Hunterdon County had the lowest, at 3.9%. The median was 9.3% and the figure for New Jersey was 10%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest18.4Cumberland County
Lowest3.9Hunterdon County
Median9.321 counties
New Jersey10History

All counties, 2017

CSVChart (SVG)

Cumberland CountyCumberland County: 18.4 %18.4Passaic CountyPassaic County: 16.5 %16.5Essex CountyEssex County: 15.7 %15.7Atlantic CountyAtlantic County: 14.4 %14.4Hudson CountyHudson County: 14.1 %14.1Salem CountySalem County: 13.3 %13.3Camden CountyCamden County: 11.7 %11.7Mercer CountyMercer County: 11.4 %11.4Cape May CountyCape May County: 10.4 %10.4Ocean CountyOcean County: 10.2 %10.2Union CountyUnion County: 9.3 %9.3Middlesex CountyMiddlesex County: 8.5 %8.5Warren CountyWarren County: 7.4 %7.4Monmouth CountyMonmouth County: 7.3 %7.3Gloucester CountyGloucester County: 6.7 %6.7Bergen CountyBergen County: 6.6 %6.6Burlington CountyBurlington County: 6.5 %6.5Somerset CountySomerset County: 5.3 %5.3Sussex CountySussex County: 5.3 %5.3Morris CountyMorris County: 4.9 %4.9Hunterdon CountyHunterdon County: 3.9 %3.9
%. Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCounties2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Cumberland County18.40 pts
2Passaic County16.5-0.7 pts
3Essex County15.7-0.6 pts
4Atlantic County14.4+0.2 pts
5Hudson County14.1-1.5 pts
6Salem County13.3+0.7 pts
7Camden County11.7-0.3 pts
8Mercer County11.4+0.3 pts
9Cape May County10.4-1.5 pts
10Ocean County10.2-0.8 pts
11Union County9.3-1.3 pts
12Middlesex County8.5-0.1 pts
13Warren County7.4-0.9 pts
14Monmouth County7.3+0.2 pts
15Gloucester County6.7-1.1 pts
16Bergen County6.6-0.3 pts
17Burlington County6.5+0.3 pts
18Somerset County5.3+0.1 pts
18Sussex County5.3-0.7 pts
20Morris County4.9-0.5 pts
21Hunterdon County3.9-0.6 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/2017/2017-state-and-county/est17all.txt. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Use this data in your AI agent

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Rank Counties in New Jersey by poverty rate using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"poverty_rate","level":"province","within":"New Jersey","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=poverty_rate&level=province&within=New%20Jersey&limit=10

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Questions

Which county has the highest poverty rate?

Cumberland County, with 18.4% in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest poverty rate?

Hunterdon County, with 3.9% in 2017.

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 New Jersey: more rankings