Like all states, Idaho has certain places that are going on hard times. These Idaho places have an above-average percentage of people living in poverty, out of work, or not making as much as they should be.
Even as the economy continues to improve, it’s worthwhile to look at the places in each state struggling to make ends meet. So we set our sites on locating the poorest places in Idaho.
To do so, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 34 cities in Idaho with more than 5,000 people.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
What’s the poorest city in Idaho? According to the facts, Rexburg is the poorest place in Idaho for 2024.
This isn’t a commentary on the people that live there or the vibrant culture and traditions of these places. Instead, it’s just a look at the facts.
For more Idaho reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Idaho
- Cheapest Places To Live In Idaho
- Most Dangerous Cities In Idaho
- The poorest states in the US
- The poorest cities in the US
The 10 Poorest Cities In Idaho For 2024
1. Rexburg
/10
Population: 38,803
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $46,286 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 39.4% (highest)
People In Poverty: 15,280
More on Rexburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Rexburg, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Idaho thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 38,803 people averages the 2nd lowest median household income in Idaho and the highest poverty rate. At the very least, the cost of living ranks in the bottom 15% of place in the state, so things like housing are relatively affordable.
2. Weiser
/10
Population: 5,678
Rank Last Year: 3 (Up 1)
Median Income: $41,491 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 21.2% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 1,202
More on Weiser: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The second poorest city in Idaho is Weiser.
The city ranks as having the 3rd highest incidence of poverty and lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 7th highest in the Gem State.
3. Rupert
/10
Population: 6,066
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 1)
Median Income: $53,348 (6th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 23.4% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 1,421
More on Rupert: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Placing as the third poorest city, Rupert’s median income ranks as the 6th lowest.
And that’s a sign that there’s a relatively substantial jump in the quality of the economy from second to third place on our list. The poverty rate is 23.44% and ranks near the bottom of places in the state.
But what makes up for the relatively low incomes of the city is its low cost of living. The income you do make here goes further than in most parts of the Gem State.
4. Preston
/10
Population: 5,668
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Median Income: $51,914 (4th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 16.4% (7th highest)
People In Poverty: 932
More on Preston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Preston ranks as the fourth poorest place in Idaho.
The town ranks as having the 4th lowest median household income and the 7th highest incidence of poverty in the state.
That being said, there’s still a ton of cultural diversity in the city as it hosts many events throughout the year.
5. Moscow
/10
Population: 25,616
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Median Income: $53,679 (7th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 19.5% (4th highest)
People In Poverty: 4,987
More on Moscow: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The fifth poorest city in Idaho is Moscow.
The city ranks as having the 7th lowest median income in the state. However, an extremely low cost of living prevents a good number of folks from living in poverty as the poverty rate only ranks as the 4th highest in Idaho.
Still not the best news for Moscow.
6. Emmett
/10
Population: 7,694
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 1)
Median Income: $54,575 (8th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 18.9% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,451
More on Emmett: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Emmett ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Gem State.
It ranks as having the 5th highest incidence of poverty and the 34th highest unemployment rate.
7. Payette
/10
Population: 8,182
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 3)
Median Income: $51,477 (3rd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 14.1% (12th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,152
More on Payette: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Payette places as the seventh poorest city in Idaho.
The city of over 8,182 ranks as having the 12th highest incidence of poverty in the state. However, it has a very low cost of living which helps to pay the bills each month.
8. Pocatello
/10
Population: 56,582
Rank Last Year: 8 (No Change)
Median Income: $56,115 (9th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 14.4% (10th highest)
People In Poverty: 8,136
More on Pocatello: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Pocatello ranks as the eighth poorest city in Idaho.
The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as one of the highest in the state.
9. Jerome
/10
Population: 12,482
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Median Income: $59,656 (13th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 17.8% (6th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,220
More on Jerome: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Jerome couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Idaho; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 13th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Jerome ranks as having the 6th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Idaho.
10. Mountain Home
/10
Population: 16,026
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 4)
Median Income: $53,108 (5th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 11.9% (17th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,910
More on Mountain Home: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Idaho is Mountain Home.
The city of 16,026 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Gem State.
Methodology: How We Determined The Poorest Places In Idaho for 2024
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the poorest places is to simply the poverty rate. That is, the number of people living below a federally established level of income for a household of a certain size.
However, we don’t think that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “poorest places”. So we used Saturday Night Science to look at this set of criteria from the newly released 2018-2022 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
After we collected the data for all 34 places with more than 5,000 people in Idaho, we ranked each place from 1 to 34 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the poorest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Poor Score” with the place having the lowest overall Poor Score, Rexburg, crowned the “Poorest Place In Idaho For 2024”.
This report has been updated for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the poorest places in Idaho.
Summary: The Poorest Cities In Idaho For 2024
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in Idaho, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Idaho.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very bottom of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the richest cities in Idaho, according to data:
-
Richest: Eagle
2nd Richest: Star
3rd Richest: Meridian
For more Idaho reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In Idaho
- Safest Places In Idaho
- Worst Places To Live In Idaho
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Idaho
Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In Idaho
| Rank | City | Population | Poverty Rate | Median Income | People In Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rexburg | 38,803 | 39.4% | $46,286 | 15,280 |
| 2 | Weiser | 5,678 | 21.2% | $41,491 | 1,202 |
| 3 | Rupert | 6,066 | 23.4% | $53,348 | 1,421 |
| 4 | Preston | 5,668 | 16.4% | $51,914 | 932 |
| 5 | Moscow | 25,616 | 19.5% | $53,679 | 4,987 |
| 6 | Emmett | 7,694 | 18.9% | $54,575 | 1,451 |
| 7 | Payette | 8,182 | 14.1% | $51,477 | 1,152 |
| 8 | Pocatello | 56,582 | 14.4% | $56,115 | 8,136 |
| 9 | Jerome | 12,482 | 17.8% | $59,656 | 2,220 |
| 10 | Mountain Home | 16,026 | 11.9% | $53,108 | 1,910 |
| 11 | Sandpoint | 8,899 | 16.1% | $60,208 | 1,432 |
| 12 | Burley | 11,506 | 13.0% | $58,889 | 1,495 |
| 13 | Lewiston | 34,270 | 14.4% | $63,109 | 4,928 |
| 14 | Twin Falls | 52,315 | 12.1% | $58,024 | 6,330 |
| 15 | Caldwell | 61,212 | 12.6% | $65,259 | 7,731 |
| 16 | Blackfoot | 12,349 | 10.1% | $57,951 | 1,242 |
| 17 | Rigby | 5,097 | 14.9% | $73,807 | 762 |
| 18 | Garden City | 12,301 | 10.5% | $61,548 | 1,292 |
| 19 | Post Falls | 40,002 | 12.9% | $71,042 | 5,168 |
| 20 | Idaho Falls | 65,685 | 11.4% | $66,463 | 7,514 |
| 21 | Fruitland | 6,169 | 10.5% | $64,167 | 645 |
| 22 | Nampa | 102,598 | 10.9% | $67,346 | 11,162 |
| 23 | Coeur d’Alene | 54,599 | 9.7% | $65,786 | 5,279 |
| 24 | Middleton | 9,614 | 9.8% | $68,947 | 939 |
| 25 | Boise City | 234,192 | 11.1% | $76,402 | 26,065 |
| 26 | Chubbuck | 15,638 | 8.2% | $69,992 | 1,279 |
| 27 | Hayden | 15,703 | 6.3% | $72,227 | 990 |
| 28 | Hailey | 9,238 | 7.6% | $77,035 | 704 |
| 29 | Kuna | 24,845 | 8.8% | $83,960 | 2,183 |
| 30 | Rathdrum | 9,556 | 7.2% | $80,934 | 690 |
| 31 | Ammon | 17,921 | 5.8% | $76,471 | 1,037 |
| 32 | Meridian | 119,872 | 6.4% | $93,296 | 7,659 |
| 33 | Star | 11,971 | 3.9% | $88,625 | 471 |
| 34 | Eagle | 30,635 | 5.5% | $114,271 | 1,681 |
