4kclips // ShutterstockPoorest states in AmericaWealth across the United States is in flux, with income gaps growing sharper even as median household incomes creep upward. According to 2024 data from the Census Bureau, the U.S. median household income was $83,730, only modestly up from about $82,690 in 2023—showing how gains are rising, but slowly. To see how these numbers vary nationwide, Stacker explored the economies of all 50 states, with statistics from the Census Bureau’s 2024 1-Year American Community Survey used to rank the poorest states by median household income. The review also includes statistics on median earnings, employment rate, health insurance coverage, and poverty level. Editor’s note: The data point on median earnings is broken down to highlight the discrepancies between women and men.