Special Report
This Is the State Where People Can't Make Ends Meet
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Last Updated:
The U.S. Census Bureau began to track the effects of COVID-19 on the population through its Household Pulse Survey on April 23 of last year. As the agency’s researchers wrote at the time, “The Household Pulse Survey is designed to deploy quickly and efficiently, collecting data to measure household experiences during the coronavirus pandemic.” The Census has not said how long this will continue, but the survey is an unprecedented picture of the impact of the pandemic on the population, both at the state and large metro areas levels.
In addition to such factors as employment status, food security, education disruptions, and physical and mental well-being, the survey also asks people whether they believe they can pay their bills. This section of the Pulse Survey is called “Difficulty paying for usual household expenses,” and is defined as adults saying it has been “somewhat” or “very” difficult to pay for normal household expenses.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed the findings produced during week 23 of the survey, which are based on questions answered from Jan. 20 to Feb. 1. Nationwide, 35.4% of adults said they had at least some difficulty paying for normal household expenses.
The state where the most people faced these challenges was Louisiana, with 49.5% of surveyed adults saying they had at least some difficulty paying for normal household expenses.
Determining exactly how these expense issues are related to income or poverty is not part of the survey’s mission. However, it is notable that, like Louisiana, most of the states near the top of the list — where the most respondents find it difficult to make ends meet — are in the South. Alabama and Florida are each above the national average, with 39% of adults saying that had trouble making ends meet. South Carolina is also high at 37.1%. Kentucky is just below that at 37%. Notably, most of these states have low median household incomes compared to the national median. (These are America’s richest and poorest states.)
The survey also looks at the same questions in major cities. Houston sits at the most troubled end of the spectrum at 44.5%, followed by Miami at 43%, and Los Angeles at 42.8%.
Click here to see the state where people can’t make ends meet.
50. Minnesota
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 19.1% (total: 808,034)
> Adult population in 2019: 4,241,624
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.0% (3rd lowest)
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49. Massachusetts
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 19.3% (total: 1,025,478)
> Adult population in 2019: 5,324,065
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.4% (8th lowest)
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48. Iowa
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 19.3% (total: 453,182)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,342,905
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.2% (20th lowest)
47. Vermont
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 19.7% (total: 95,708)
> Adult population in 2019: 485,485
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.2% (15th lowest)
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46. Kansas
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 20.7% (total: 442,245)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,140,957
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.4% (24th lowest)
45. Montana
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 20.7% (total: 170,169)
> Adult population in 2019: 822,204
> Poverty rate in 2019: 12.6% (20th highest)
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44. Utah
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 20.9% (total: 477,279)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,281,207
> Poverty rate in 2019: 8.9% (2nd lowest)
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43. Missouri
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 21.0% (total: 969,103)
> Adult population in 2019: 4,617,880
> Poverty rate in 2019: 12.9% (18th highest)
42. Wisconsin
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 21.6% (total: 959,415)
> Adult population in 2019: 4,438,719
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.4% (16th lowest)
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41. South Dakota
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 21.7% (total: 139,256)
> Adult population in 2019: 642,658
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.9% (23rd highest)
40. Idaho
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 21.9% (total: 294,446)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,343,198
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.2% (21st lowest)
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39. Rhode Island
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.1% (total: 181,015)
> Adult population in 2019: 817,559
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.8% (18th lowest)
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38. Ohio
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.3% (total: 1,963,361)
> Adult population in 2019: 8,822,539
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.1% (15th highest)
37. Colorado
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.3% (total: 993,366)
> Adult population in 2019: 4,454,718
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.3% (7th lowest)
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36. Indiana
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.3% (total: 1,120,594)
> Adult population in 2019: 5,015,550
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.9% (24th highest)
35. Washington
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.8% (total: 1,341,207)
> Adult population in 2019: 5,890,357
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.8% (9th lowest)
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34. Virginia
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.8% (total: 1,474,163)
> Adult population in 2019: 6,472,737
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.9% (11th lowest)
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33. North Dakota
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 22.9% (total: 128,358)
> Adult population in 2019: 561,016
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.6% (17th lowest)
32. Nebraska
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 23.1% (total: 327,080)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,418,191
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.9% (10th lowest)
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31. New Hampshire
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 23.3% (total: 250,444)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,073,014
> Poverty rate in 2019: 7.3% (the lowest)
30. Pennsylvania
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 24.9% (total: 2,435,107)
> Adult population in 2019: 9,776,154
> Poverty rate in 2019: 12.0% (22nd highest)
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29. Michigan
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 25.6% (total: 1,956,964)
> Adult population in 2019: 7,644,458
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.0% (17th highest)
28. South Carolina
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 25.8% (total: 1,023,054)
> Adult population in 2019: 3,969,123
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.8% (10th highest)
27. Maine
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 25.8% (total: 274,940)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,065,620
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.9% (19th lowest)
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26. North Carolina
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 25.8% (total: 2,069,260)
> Adult population in 2019: 8,017,566
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.6% (12th highest)
25. Illinois
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 25.9% (total: 2,471,697)
> Adult population in 2019: 9,546,424
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.5% (25th lowest)
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24. Tennessee
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 26.1% (total: 1,362,911)
> Adult population in 2019: 5,221,475
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.9% (9th highest)
23. Alaska
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 26.5% (total: 139,098)
> Adult population in 2019: 524,925
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.1% (13th lowest)
22. Alabama
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 26.5% (total: 986,618)
> Adult population in 2019: 3,717,378
> Poverty rate in 2019: 15.5% (7th highest)
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21. Kentucky
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 26.8% (total: 896,474)
> Adult population in 2019: 3,344,102
> Poverty rate in 2019: 16.3% (4th highest)
20. Arizona
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 26.9% (total: 1,502,903)
> Adult population in 2019: 5,597,268
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.5% (13th highest)
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19. Delaware
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 27.0% (total: 204,114)
> Adult population in 2019: 754,637
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.3% (22nd lowest)
18. Oregon
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 27.2% (total: 898,228)
> Adult population in 2019: 3,302,727
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.4% (23rd lowest)
17. Maryland
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 27.5% (total: 1,259,379)
> Adult population in 2019: 4,586,920
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.0% (4th lowest)
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16. New York
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 27.6% (total: 4,095,779)
> Adult population in 2019: 14,847,080
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.0% (16th highest)
15. Wyoming
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 28.1% (total: 121,713)
> Adult population in 2019: 433,400
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.1% (14th lowest)
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14. New Mexico
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 28.6% (total: 454,817)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,589,574
> Poverty rate in 2019: 18.2% (3rd highest)
13. New Jersey
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 28.9% (total: 1,960,177)
> Adult population in 2019: 6,776,822
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.2% (5th lowest)
12. Florida
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 29.3% (total: 5,014,113)
> Adult population in 2019: 17,085,385
> Poverty rate in 2019: 12.7% (19th highest)
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11. Connecticut
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 29.9% (total: 816,946)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,732,423
> Poverty rate in 2019: 10.0% (12th lowest)
10. Nevada
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 30.1% (total: 723,081)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,399,457
> Poverty rate in 2019: 12.5% (21st highest)
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9. Hawaii
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 30.4% (total: 326,117)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,073,229
> Poverty rate in 2019: 9.3% (6th lowest)
8. California
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 30.5% (total: 9,129,920)
> Adult population in 2019: 29,939,021
> Poverty rate in 2019: 11.8% (25th highest)
7. West Virginia
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 30.5% (total: 420,945)
> Adult population in 2019: 1,379,576
> Poverty rate in 2019: 16.0% (6th highest)
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6. Texas
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 31.1% (total: 6,642,774)
> Adult population in 2019: 21,356,906
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.6% (11th highest)
5. Georgia
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 32.1% (total: 2,552,103)
> Adult population in 2019: 7,955,983
> Poverty rate in 2019: 13.3% (14th highest)
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4. Louisiana
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 32.2% (total: 1,103,881)
> Adult population in 2019: 3,431,432
> Poverty rate in 2019: 19.0% (2nd highest)
3. Arkansas
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 32.2% (total: 723,469)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,246,527
> Poverty rate in 2019: 16.2% (5th highest)
2. Mississippi
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 33.5% (total: 733,635)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,189,670
> Poverty rate in 2019: 19.6% (the highest)
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1. Oklahoma
> Adults having difficulty making ends meet: 33.9% (total: 989,727)
> Adult population in 2019: 2,916,436
> Poverty rate in 2019: 15.2% (8th highest)
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