Detroit No Longer Poorest City In U.S.: Census Data

MICHIGAN — When it comes to being nation's most impoverished big city, Detroit is off the schneid. For the first time in 10 years, the city is no longer considered the poorest city in the U.S., according to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey results released Thursday.

The survey data released Thursday uses information from 2019. Detroit was listed as the No. 2 most impoverished big city in the U.S. last year, with 30.6 percent of its residents living below the poverty line. Cleveland was No. 1 with 30.8 percent of its residents living below the poverty line.

Poverty is defined as a family of three making less than $21,330 per year, according to the Census Bureau. "Big cities," which Detroit is considered, are those in which more than 65,000 residents reside.

The Census Bureau defines poverty as a family of three making no more than $21,330 annually.

According to the data, Detroit's population currently stands at a little more than 670,000. That is down nearly 7 percent from 2010, when the city had more than 713,000 residents.

Data for the 2019 ACS was collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore does not reflect the economic changes that began in February 2020.