New Census figures show record U.S. household income, mixed poverty results

What This is

• The Census Bureau says real median household income rose 2.6% in 2025 to $87,460, the highest inflation-adjusted level on record.
• The official poverty rate fell to 10.2% in 2025, or about 34.5 million people.
• The Supplemental Poverty Measure, which counts taxes and benefits and adjusts for key costs, stayed around 13.1%.
• Income gains were uneven: the bottom 10% saw no significant change while the top fifth took in more than half of all income.
• Child poverty was reported at 13.4% in 2025, and some outlets described it as a record low.
• The supplemental measure shows senior poverty rose to 15.4% in 2025, with more than 10 million people age 65 and older in poverty.
• Several reports warn the 2025 data do not yet reflect later safety-net and health-policy changes, including cuts to Medicaid and SNAP and the lapse of enhanced ACA subsidies.

Why This Matters

• These figures shape how people judge living standards, because they show what families have left after inflation.
• The different poverty measures can lead to different assessments of progress because the supplemental measure also accounts for taxes, benefits and necessary expenses.
• The lack of a significant income gain at the bottom raises questions about how widely the year’s gains were shared.
• The higher supplemental poverty rate for older adults highlights why retirement security must be assessed alongside housing and medical costs.