Washington, DC – Nearly one in three single moms in the United States live in poverty, according to new analysis from the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC). Using the most recent available data from the U.S. Census Bureau, NWLC found that the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) poverty rate for single mothers more than doubled from the 11.9% rate in 2021 to 29.3% in 2025. 

The disparities are even more pronounced when broken down by race and ethnicity. Among single Latina mothers, the poverty rate reached 34.2% in 2025, up more than nine percentage points in just one year (from 25.0% in 2024). 

Read the brand-new fact sheet: National Snapshot: Poverty Among Women & Families in 2025 

“Poverty rates for single mothers have been rising since 2021 because our policymakers allowed the expanded Child Tax Credit and other pandemic-era supports to expire. And now policies enacted by President Trump and congressional Republicans, especially the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), are making it even harder for single moms to make ends meet by slashing SNAP and Medicaid, which single mothers and their children disproportionately rely on,” said Sarah Javaid, author of the fact sheet and senior research analyst at NWLC.  

“Women are working hard to put food on the table, but employment alone often isn’t enough to escape poverty—particularly amid today’s continuously rising costs, federal cuts to basic needs programs, and a federal minimum wage of $7.25. This election showed us that women and families want Congress to lower the costs of basic needs, which includes undoing OBBBA’s devastating cuts. Lawmakers must work harder to lift families out of poverty. Robust investments in programs now will help generations of families to come.”  

To speak with an expert about this new data and its significance, please contact [email protected].  

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