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Here's the income it takes for a family of 4 to be considered poor in every state

To better understand what it means to be "poor" in each state, we calculated the income it takes to be at the poverty level based on buying power.

  • Wage growth has been dismal

Wage growth has been dismal for many American workers, despite signs of a strong economy.

According to the United States Census Bureau, 12.3% of the US population is living in poverty, which means they're earning below $25,100, except in Alaska and Hawaii, where it's $31,380 and $28,870, respectively.

But cost of living varies from state to state, so in order to better understand what it means to be "poor" in each state, we used data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis that indicates how far $100 goes in each state, known as buying power. For example, a person in New York needs to spend $115.60 to get the same goods that a person in Delaware pays $100 for, whereas a Mississippi resident would pay $86.

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Based on this buying power, we then calculated how much a family of four actually to needs to make to be at the poverty line. Based on the example above, a New York family must earn $29,016 to have the buying power of a typical American family at the poverty line, whereas the threshold for a Delaware or Mississippi family is lower — $25,677 and $21,686, respectively.

Below, see what's considered "poor" in every state, ranked from lowest to highest salary needed to be at the poverty line based on buying power.

51. Mississippi

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $86.40

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

50. Alabama

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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49. Arkansas

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

48. West Virginia

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

47. Kentucky

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

46. South Dakota

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

45. Oklahoma

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $89

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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44. Ohio

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

43. Missouri

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

42. Iowa

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $90.20

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

41. Tennessee

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

40. Indiana

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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39. South Carolina

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

38. Louisiana

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

37. Kansas

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

36. Nebraska

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

35. North Carolina

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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34. North Dakota

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

33. Georgia

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

32. Wisconsin

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

31. Idaho

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

30. Michigan

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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29. New Mexico

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

28. Montana

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power: $23,619

27. Arizona

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

26. Wyoming

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

25. Texas

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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24. Utah

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

23. Nevada

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

22. Minnesota

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

21. Maine

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

20. Pennsylvania

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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19. Illinois

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

18. Rhode Island

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

17. Florida

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

16. Oregon

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

15. Delaware

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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14. Vermont

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

13. Virginia

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

12. Colorado

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

11. Washington

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

10. New Hampshire

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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9. Massachusetts

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

8. Connecticut

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

7. Maryland

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

6. New Jersey

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

5. California

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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4. Hawaii

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

3. New York

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Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

2. Washington, DC

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

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Poverty line:

Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

1. Alaska

Money needed to buy $100 nationally: $

Poverty line:

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Salary needed to be at poverty line based on buying power:

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