The percentage of people living in poverty is a measure of the overall economic health of a region. It also indicates the level of need for social and government supports within the community.

In 2018-22, 10% of Worcester County residents, or about 83,300 people were living in poverty, on par with 2008-12. The County rate is the same as the state (10%) and slightly lower than the nation (13%). Within the County, the City of Worcester had the highest rate, at 19%, with nearly 37,300 residents below the poverty line. Southbridge was second highest, at 18%, with about 3,100 residents.

Poverty status is not reported for people in institutions, including college dormitories and military barracks, and people in living situations without conventional housing.

The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. The multi-year figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. However, because the information came from a survey, the samples responding to the survey were not always large enough to produce reliable results, especially in small geographic areas. CGR has noted on data tables the estimates with relatively large margins of error. Estimates with three asterisks have the largest margins, plus or minus 50% or more of the estimate. Two asterisks mean plus or minus 35%-50%, and one asterisk means plus or minus 20%-35%. For all estimates, the confidence level is 90%, meaning there is 90% probability the true value (if the whole population were surveyed) would be within the margin of error (or confidence interval). Data for this indicator are expected to be released in the fourth quarter.