The poverty rate in the United States has reached its lowest level in American history.
Posted by Badlands Media, Checked
- Sources
- 3 contradict2 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 65%
Badlands MediaOct 15, 2026
The official Census Bureau poverty rate fell to 10.2% in 2025, the lowest on record since 1959, so the claim holds on that measure. However, the Census Bureau's supplemental poverty measure (13.1%) was not at a record low, and the claim's unqualified 'poverty rate' depends on which measure is meant.
A detail. The sources confirm the gist; the verdict faults a detail such as a date, number or wording.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… They were two weeks away from a nuclear weapon. They aren't that right now. They'll never have a nuclear weapon, never. So, another stat, which they don't report about the poverty rate, has just reached its lowest level in American history. So, think of that. So, the poverty rate is the best. That means the lowest income people are doing better than they've ever done. …
Badlands Media · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. On the Supplemental Poverty Measure, 2025 was 13.1%, not a record low; the SPM low was 7.7% in 2021, which FactCheck.org and AP say undercuts the unqualified claim.[1][2][5]
Supports. The Census Bureau's 2025 report puts the official poverty rate at 10.2%, the lowest since tracking began in 1959, and Reuters and Snopes report the same.[3][4][5]
Context. AP and FactCheck.org call the claim accurate for the official measure but missing context, and FactCheck.org says Trump is right about the official rate while an alternative measure is not at its low.[1][2]
Context. Some unrated sources cite a 10.5% record low from 2019, which predates the revised 2025 figure and does not conflict with it.[6][7]
Sources
7 sources: 4 fact-checkers, 1 primary, 2 not rated
- 1The poverty rate is at an all-time low, but there are other factors to ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: contradicts, context
- 2FactChecking Claims from Trump’s Midterm Ralliesfactcheck.org · fact-checker · cited for: contradicts, context
- 3US poverty rate dips to lowest on record, Census Bureau saysreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 4Is official US poverty rate at all-time historical low, as Trump claimed?snopes.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 5Poverty in the United States: 2025 - https: // www2 . census . gov.www2.census.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts, supports
- 6Commentary: US poverty rate hits record low. Welfare ...dailyrepublic.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 7Donald Trump says the US has ‘best poverty numbers in history'metro.co.uk · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
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