Like all states, Oregon has certain places that are going on hard times. These Oregon 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 Oregon.
To do so, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 79 cities in Oregon with more than 5,000 people.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Poorest Places In Oregon For 2024:
What’s the poorest city in Oregon? According to the facts, Ontario is the poorest place in Oregon 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 Oregon reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Oregon
- Cheapest Places To Live In Oregon
- Most Dangerous Cities In Oregon
- The poorest states in the US
- The poorest cities in the US
The 10 Poorest Cities In Oregon For 2024
1. Ontario
/10
Population: 11,610
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Income: $39,750 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 21.4% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 2,483
More on Ontario: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Ontario, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Oregon thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 11,610 people averages the lowest median household income in Oregon and the 3rd 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. Klamath Falls
/10
Population: 21,806
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $46,695 (4th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 22.1% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 4,814
More on Klamath Falls: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The second poorest city in Oregon is Klamath Falls.
The city ranks as having the 2nd highest incidence of poverty and 4th lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 5th highest in the Beaver State.
3. Roseburg
/10
Population: 23,657
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 4)
Median Income: $50,297 (6th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 20.0% (6th highest)
People In Poverty: 4,736
More on Roseburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Placing as the third poorest city, Roseburg’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 20.02% 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 Beaver State.
4. La Grande
/10
Population: 13,097
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 1)
Median Income: $52,039 (9th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 20.8% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,725
More on La Grande: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
La Grande ranks as the fourth poorest place in Oregon.
The town ranks as having the 9th lowest median household income and the 5th 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. Madras
/10
Population: 7,494
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Median Income: $52,500 (10th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 18.1% (8th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,356
More on Madras: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The fifth poorest city in Oregon is Madras.
The city ranks as having the 10th 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 8th highest in Oregon.
Still not the best news for Madras.
6. Sweet Home
/10
Population: 9,852
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Median Income: $56,783 (18th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 17.4% (10th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,718
More on Sweet Home: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Sweet Home ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Beaver State.
It ranks as having the 10th highest incidence of poverty and the 8th highest unemployment rate.
7. Seaside
/10
Population: 7,142
Rank Last Year: 22 (Up 15)
Median Income: $44,087 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 13.7% (28th highest)
People In Poverty: 976
More on Seaside: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Seaside places as the seventh poorest city in Oregon.
The city of over 7,142 ranks as having the 28th 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. Talent
/10
Population: 6,256
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 4)
Median Income: $51,215 (8th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 15.2% (22nd highest)
People In Poverty: 949
More on Talent: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Talent ranks as the eighth poorest city in Oregon.
The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as one of the highest in the state.
9. Grants Pass
/10
Population: 39,131
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 4)
Median Income: $53,941 (14th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 15.7% (17th highest)
People In Poverty: 6,155
More on Grants Pass: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Grants Pass couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Oregon; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 14th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Grants Pass ranks as having the 17th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Oregon.
10. Corvallis
/10
Population: 60,050
Rank Last Year: 15 (Up 5)
Median Income: $61,610 (30th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 26.4% (highest)
People In Poverty: 15,865
More on Corvallis: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Oregon is Corvallis.
The city of 60,050 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Beaver State.
Methodology: How We Determined The Poorest Places In Oregon 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 79 places with more than 5,000 people in Oregon, we ranked each place from 1 to 79 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, Ontario, crowned the “Poorest Place In Oregon For 2024”.
This report has been updated for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the poorest places in Oregon.
Summary: The Poorest Cities In Oregon For 2024
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in Oregon, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Oregon.
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 Oregon, according to data:
-
Richest: Lake Oswego
2nd Richest: Sherwood
3rd Richest: West Linn
For more Oregon reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In Oregon
- Safest Places In Oregon
- Worst Places To Live In Oregon
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Oregon
Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In Oregon
| Rank | City | Population | Poverty Rate | Median Income | People In Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ontario | 11,610 | 21.4% | $39,750 | 2,483 |
| 2 | Klamath Falls | 21,806 | 22.1% | $46,695 | 4,814 |
| 3 | Roseburg | 23,657 | 20.0% | $50,297 | 4,736 |
| 4 | La Grande | 13,097 | 20.8% | $52,039 | 2,725 |
| 5 | Madras | 7,494 | 18.1% | $52,500 | 1,356 |
| 6 | Sweet Home | 9,852 | 17.4% | $56,783 | 1,718 |
| 7 | Seaside | 7,142 | 13.7% | $44,087 | 976 |
| 8 | Talent | 6,256 | 15.2% | $51,215 | 949 |
| 9 | Grants Pass | 39,131 | 15.7% | $53,941 | 6,155 |
| 10 | Corvallis | 60,050 | 26.4% | $61,610 | 15,865 |
| 11 | Monmouth | 11,054 | 21.1% | $61,282 | 2,329 |
| 12 | Umatilla | 7,433 | 16.0% | $56,413 | 1,191 |
| 13 | Lebanon | 18,587 | 14.6% | $53,246 | 2,715 |
| 14 | Winston | 5,618 | 13.7% | $51,182 | 767 |
| 15 | Eugene | 176,755 | 19.3% | $61,481 | 34,096 |
| 16 | Sutherlin | 8,513 | 13.2% | $48,610 | 1,124 |
| 17 | Cottage Grove | 10,583 | 17.4% | $60,219 | 1,842 |
| 18 | Coos Bay | 15,949 | 14.6% | $53,331 | 2,325 |
| 19 | Newport | 10,319 | 15.5% | $57,511 | 1,600 |
| 20 | Baker City | 10,110 | 13.8% | $54,063 | 1,393 |
| 21 | Ashland | 21,401 | 17.9% | $64,767 | 3,832 |
| 22 | Springfield | 61,740 | 16.4% | $60,982 | 10,131 |
| 23 | Milton-Freewater | 7,137 | 11.8% | $46,372 | 840 |
| 24 | Woodburn | 26,222 | 15.4% | $58,916 | 4,032 |
| 25 | McMinnville | 34,432 | 16.9% | $65,318 | 5,829 |
| 26 | North Bend | 10,250 | 16.1% | $67,841 | 1,649 |
| 27 | Sheridan | 6,237 | 12.4% | $56,989 | 775 |
| 28 | Lincoln City | 9,790 | 11.9% | $54,210 | 1,162 |
| 29 | Pendleton | 17,005 | 15.5% | $67,931 | 2,637 |
| 30 | Florence | 9,384 | 12.4% | $57,568 | 1,159 |
| 31 | Tillamook | 5,215 | 10.8% | $53,711 | 564 |
| 32 | Dallas | 16,945 | 15.4% | $67,935 | 2,611 |
| 33 | Salem | 175,754 | 14.6% | $67,540 | 25,677 |
| 34 | Veneta | 5,177 | 10.9% | $58,825 | 565 |
| 35 | Medford | 85,539 | 13.2% | $65,647 | 11,274 |
| 36 | Gresham | 113,525 | 13.8% | $69,437 | 15,632 |
| 37 | The Dalles | 15,988 | 10.4% | $59,714 | 1,670 |
| 38 | Prineville | 10,915 | 11.1% | $63,904 | 1,208 |
| 39 | Hermiston | 19,267 | 11.2% | $65,502 | 2,148 |
| 40 | King City | 5,063 | 9.3% | $57,763 | 471 |
| 41 | Astoria | 10,184 | 12.1% | $69,463 | 1,230 |
| 42 | Gladstone | 11,996 | 16.8% | $88,043 | 2,018 |
| 43 | Forest Grove | 26,160 | 13.6% | $77,977 | 3,565 |
| 44 | Albany | 56,348 | 11.9% | $69,777 | 6,688 |
| 45 | Fairview | 10,515 | 13.6% | $78,407 | 1,433 |
| 46 | Silverton | 10,439 | 12.1% | $75,167 | 1,263 |
| 47 | Hood River | 8,292 | 9.7% | $70,791 | 803 |
| 48 | Independence | 9,981 | 10.0% | $73,361 | 1,000 |
| 49 | Portland | 646,101 | 12.2% | $85,876 | 78,695 |
| 50 | St. Helens | 14,015 | 10.1% | $77,475 | 1,416 |
| 51 | Stayton | 8,210 | 9.2% | $72,639 | 752 |
| 52 | Junction City | 6,831 | 8.7% | $70,411 | 592 |
| 53 | Keizer | 39,122 | 9.4% | $75,753 | 3,677 |
| 54 | Redmond | 34,191 | 8.3% | $72,798 | 2,844 |
| 55 | Bend | 99,442 | 9.5% | $82,671 | 9,466 |
| 56 | Cornelius | 13,245 | 9.5% | $83,051 | 1,252 |
| 57 | Beaverton | 97,554 | 10.7% | $88,899 | 10,448 |
| 58 | Warrenton | 6,254 | 5.4% | $69,400 | 339 |
| 59 | Eagle Point | 9,735 | 9.4% | $83,625 | 918 |
| 60 | Central Point | 19,123 | 8.5% | $79,731 | 1,617 |
| 61 | Molalla | 10,147 | 7.0% | $77,442 | 712 |
| 62 | Wilsonville | 25,992 | 8.7% | $83,210 | 2,271 |
| 63 | Milwaukie | 21,195 | 6.8% | $78,676 | 1,432 |
| 64 | Tualatin | 27,804 | 9.6% | $105,542 | 2,666 |
| 65 | Brookings | 6,719 | 6.5% | $79,109 | 435 |
| 66 | Canby | 18,127 | 8.8% | $91,823 | 1,589 |
| 67 | Newberg | 25,379 | 8.0% | $87,873 | 2,035 |
| 68 | Troutdale | 16,150 | 7.4% | $86,307 | 1,191 |
| 69 | Philomath | 5,429 | 5.3% | $80,599 | 289 |
| 70 | Oregon City | 37,418 | 7.8% | $90,174 | 2,918 |
| 71 | Hillsboro | 106,612 | 7.9% | $98,891 | 8,433 |
| 72 | Tigard | 55,161 | 7.8% | $101,354 | 4,302 |
| 73 | Scappoose | 8,003 | 7.1% | $96,339 | 570 |
| 74 | Creswell | 5,607 | 2.8% | $85,126 | 156 |
| 75 | Sandy | 12,592 | 5.2% | $98,341 | 653 |
| 76 | Happy Valley | 24,381 | 5.6% | $126,108 | 1,362 |
| 77 | West Linn | 27,167 | 5.6% | $134,116 | 1,510 |
| 78 | Sherwood | 20,286 | 4.3% | $109,770 | 876 |
| 79 | Lake Oswego | 40,457 | 3.9% | $127,252 | 1,581 |
