The data reveals persistent poverty and deep racial income gaps.
By Mary Claire Wooten
Recently, Alabama Possible released its Barriers to Prosperity data sheet. The data sheet explores how poverty and other economic barriers, like food security and access to education, employment, and health insurance, impact communities.
The Birmingham-based nonprofit organisation has released the data sheet since 2010 and began incorporating an interactive data dashboard in 2020.
Despite years of effort to expand opportunity, more than 780,000 residents, including about 236,000 children, are living below the federal poverty line.
The statewide poverty rate remains near 16 percent, keeping Alabama among the poorest states in the country. For many families, especially those in rural and persistently under-resourced counties, the basic costs of living continue to outpace wages.
The report highlights stark racial and ethnic disparities that continue to define economic life in the state. In 2023, the median household income for white Alabamians was about $84,745. For Black households, the median was roughly $53,444, and for Hispanic or Latino households, about $68,890. That means Black households had a median income more than $30,000 lower than white households. These gaps directly shape which families can build savings, invest in education or cover routine emergencies.
Poverty rates reflect those divides. Black and Hispanic Alabamians experience poverty at significantly higher levels than white residents. While the statewide poverty rate is just under 16 percent, the rate is far higher for many communities of color. Black and Hispanic or Latino residents experience poverty at significantly elevated levels compared to white Alabamians, reflecting longstanding inequities in access to jobs, education, transportation, and other basic supports that make economic stability possible.
According to the most recent figures, roughly 21 percent of Black Alabamians live below the poverty line, and close to 17 percent of Hispanic or Latino residents are in poverty, almost double the rate for white residents, which sits near 11 percent.
County-level numbers add another layer of urgency. Several Alabama counties show poverty rates above 30 percent, and a number rise into 33 percent or more. In those communities, nearly one in three people are living below the poverty threshold. These are not isolated situations—they represent entire counties where economic hardship is the dominant reality, shaping schools, job prospects, health outcomes, and long-term community stability.
The report also emphasizes that poverty rarely exists on its own. Many Alabamians face what Alabama Possible calls “stacked barriers,” including low educational attainment, limited access to stable employment, food insecurity, unaffordable housing, and gaps in health-insurance coverage. A family struggling with one of these issues may manage to stay afloat, but facing several at once can push households into long-term economic hardship that becomes extremely difficult to escape.
“The Barriers to Prosperity Data Sheet exists to move Alabama from deliberation to action. These numbers are not just statistics—they represent our neighbours, our students, and our workforce. When we humanise the data, we unlock clearer pathways to changing systems and creating real opportunity across our state,” said Chandra Scott, Executive Director of Alabama Possible
These numbers show the urgency for policies that expand access to living-wage jobs, strengthen public education, support children from low-income families, and address racial income disparities that have persisted. For lawmakers, school systems, nonprofit organisations, and community leaders, the data shows that targeted, community-level investment is necessary if the state hopes to reduce poverty.
Mary Claire is a reporter. You can reach her at mwooten@alreporter.com