New NWLC Data Shows Poverty Rates Increased for Black and Older Women in 2024

Washington, D.C. – The National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) today released a new analysis of Census data showing that, despite a strong labor market, poverty rates as measured by the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) increased for Black women and older women in 2024. According to the analysis:

From 2023 to 2024, the poverty rate for Black women rose from 18.9% to 21.2%.
During the same period, the poverty rate for women ages 65 and older increased from 15.0% to 16.2%.

“Poverty is a policy choice,” said Amy Matsui, vice president for income security and child care at NWLC. “Our findings show that when the government cuts supports that people who live in poverty rely on to meet basic needs, women – especially Black and older women – disproportionately bear the burden of systemic inequities. Lawmakers should focus on supporting struggling families, but President Trump and congressional Republicans would rather give tax breaks to billionaires than make sure women and families can afford food, health care, and other necessities.”

Poverty rates for adult women increased from 8.7% in 2021 to 13.7% in 2024, meaning nearly one in seven women lived in poverty last year. For many women, employment alone was not enough to escape economic insecurity. NWLC’s analysis highlights that nearly two in five working-age women who lived in poverty in 2024 were working, and many women in poverty cannot engage in paid work due to caregiving responsibilities, illness, and/or disability.

Last month, NWLC released data showing that 80% of Latinas and 73% of Black women in the United States are worried about affording groceries amid funding battles over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. NWLC also released a new interactive resource revealing which states have the highest poverty rates for single mothers.

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