Like all states, Kansas has certain places that are going on hard times. These Kansas 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 Kansas.
To do so, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 63 cities in Kansas with more than 5,000 people.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Poorest Places In Kansas For 2024:
What’s the poorest city in Kansas? According to the facts, Pittsburg is the poorest place in Kansas 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 Kansas reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Kansas
- Cheapest Places To Live In Kansas
- Most Dangerous Places In Kansas
- The poorest states in the US
- The poorest cities in the US
The 10 Poorest Cities In Kansas For 2024
1. Pittsburg
/10
Population: 20,610
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $42,371 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 29.4% (highest)
People In Poverty: 6,057
More on Pittsburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Pittsburg, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Kansas thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 20,610 people averages the 2nd lowest median household income in Kansas 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. Coffeyville
/10
Population: 8,842
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $41,220 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 22.6% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 1,995
More on Coffeyville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The second poorest city in Kansas is Coffeyville.
The city ranks as having the 3rd highest incidence of poverty and lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 6th highest in the Sunflower State.
3. Iola
/10
Population: 5,395
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $46,351 (5th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 19.5% (4th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,050
More on Iola: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Placing as the third poorest city, Iola’s median income ranks as the 5th 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 19.48% 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 Sunflower State.
4. Emporia
/10
Population: 24,118
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 2)
Median Income: $49,661 (10th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 19.4% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 4,678
More on Emporia: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Emporia ranks as the fourth poorest place in Kansas.
The town ranks as having the 10th 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. Parsons
/10
Population: 9,564
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $48,990 (8th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 18.7% (8th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,786
More on Parsons: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The fifth poorest city in Kansas is Parsons.
The city ranks as having the 8th 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 Kansas.
Still not the best news for Parsons.
6. Independence
/10
Population: 8,556
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 1)
Median Income: $48,514 (7th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 17.6% (9th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,506
More on Independence: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Independence ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Sunflower State.
It ranks as having the 9th highest incidence of poverty and the 50th highest unemployment rate.
7. Concordia
/10
Population: 5,080
Rank Last Year: 15 (Up 8)
Median Income: $45,000 (3rd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 15.8% (16th highest)
People In Poverty: 802
More on Concordia: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Concordia places as the seventh poorest city in Kansas.
The city of over 5,080 ranks as having the 16th 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. Chanute
/10
Population: 8,713
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Median Income: $52,608 (12th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 18.8% (7th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,635
More on Chanute: Data | Cost Of Living
Chanute ranks as the eighth poorest city in Kansas.
The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as one of the highest in the state.
9. Manhattan
/10
Population: 54,287
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 4)
Median Income: $55,316 (18th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 26.4% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 14,358
More on Manhattan: Data | Cost Of Living
Manhattan couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Kansas; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 18th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Manhattan ranks as having the 2nd most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Kansas.
10. Atchison
/10
Population: 10,834
Rank Last Year: 14 (Up 4)
Median Income: $50,344 (11th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 17.3% (11th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,876
More on Atchison: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Kansas is Atchison.
The city of 10,834 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Sunflower State.
Methodology: How We Determined The Poorest Places In Kansas 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 63 places with more than 5,000 people in Kansas, we ranked each place from 1 to 63 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, Pittsburg, crowned the “Poorest Place In Kansas For 2024”.
This report has been updated for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the poorest places in Kansas.
Summary: The Poorest Cities In Kansas For 2024
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in Kansas, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Kansas.
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 Kansas, according to data:
-
Richest: Leawood
2nd Richest: Andover
3rd Richest: Overland Park
For more Kansas reading, check out:
Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In Kansas
| Rank | City | Population | Poverty Rate | Median Income | People In Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pittsburg | 20,610 | 29.4% | $42,371 | 6,057 |
| 2 | Coffeyville | 8,842 | 22.6% | $41,220 | 1,995 |
| 3 | Iola | 5,395 | 19.5% | $46,351 | 1,050 |
| 4 | Emporia | 24,118 | 19.4% | $49,661 | 4,678 |
| 5 | Parsons | 9,564 | 18.7% | $48,990 | 1,786 |
| 6 | Independence | 8,556 | 17.6% | $48,514 | 1,506 |
| 7 | Concordia | 5,080 | 15.8% | $45,000 | 802 |
| 8 | Chanute | 8,713 | 18.8% | $52,608 | 1,635 |
| 9 | Manhattan | 54,287 | 26.4% | $55,316 | 14,358 |
| 10 | Atchison | 10,834 | 17.3% | $50,344 | 1,876 |
| 11 | Fort Scott | 7,569 | 15.5% | $45,206 | 1,171 |
| 12 | Arkansas City | 11,997 | 15.7% | $49,177 | 1,882 |
| 13 | Great Bend | 14,725 | 16.3% | $53,885 | 2,398 |
| 14 | Wellington | 7,710 | 14.8% | $48,333 | 1,144 |
| 15 | Topeka | 126,431 | 16.0% | $54,052 | 20,279 |
| 16 | Lawrence | 95,103 | 18.8% | $59,834 | 17,898 |
| 17 | Hays | 21,111 | 17.1% | $55,349 | 3,616 |
| 18 | Kansas City | 155,438 | 17.4% | $56,120 | 26,999 |
| 19 | El Dorado | 12,882 | 15.0% | $52,921 | 1,937 |
| 20 | Junction City | 22,738 | 17.3% | $60,709 | 3,926 |
| 21 | Hutchinson | 39,995 | 14.8% | $55,265 | 5,927 |
| 22 | Wichita | 395,951 | 15.5% | $60,712 | 61,372 |
| 23 | Liberal | 19,099 | 14.8% | $55,602 | 2,820 |
| 24 | Winfield | 11,804 | 14.7% | $55,850 | 1,739 |
| 25 | Mulvane | 6,003 | 15.3% | $67,766 | 917 |
| 26 | Salina | 46,734 | 12.7% | $56,945 | 5,921 |
| 27 | Pratt | 6,588 | 13.8% | $61,117 | 906 |
| 28 | Abilene | 6,489 | 8.5% | $54,948 | 552 |
| 29 | McPherson | 13,955 | 15.1% | $69,807 | 2,103 |
| 30 | Leavenworth | 37,193 | 14.6% | $67,360 | 5,433 |
| 31 | Augusta | 9,253 | 11.0% | $59,536 | 1,015 |
| 32 | Tonganoxie | 5,484 | 15.1% | $71,333 | 825 |
| 33 | Garden City | 27,933 | 13.0% | $67,500 | 3,631 |
| 34 | Dodge City | 27,721 | 12.8% | $66,932 | 3,537 |
| 35 | Haysville | 10,891 | 12.3% | $66,382 | 1,339 |
| 36 | Ottawa | 12,615 | 9.7% | $61,927 | 1,221 |
| 37 | Newton | 18,527 | 11.7% | $66,528 | 2,173 |
| 38 | Park City | 7,703 | 14.4% | $70,583 | 1,106 |
| 39 | Colby | 5,403 | 7.6% | $62,937 | 410 |
| 40 | Roeland Park | 6,848 | 12.9% | $84,848 | 882 |
| 41 | Bonner Springs | 7,770 | 12.5% | $82,208 | 972 |
| 42 | Ulysses | 5,834 | 5.9% | $62,138 | 345 |
| 43 | Mission | 9,894 | 10.0% | $78,915 | 988 |
| 44 | Merriam | 11,070 | 7.3% | $69,414 | 810 |
| 45 | Maize | 6,071 | 12.1% | $88,075 | 735 |
| 46 | Paola | 5,742 | 6.1% | $69,420 | 350 |
| 47 | Bel Aire | 8,341 | 9.6% | $91,979 | 798 |
| 48 | Derby | 25,551 | 6.8% | $79,581 | 1,727 |
| 49 | Basehor | 7,004 | 7.8% | $100,608 | 545 |
| 50 | Gardner | 23,488 | 6.2% | $91,232 | 1,456 |
| 51 | Valley Center | 8,448 | 2.3% | $70,531 | 197 |
| 52 | Spring Hill | 8,279 | 8.0% | $105,194 | 665 |
| 53 | Eudora | 6,025 | 7.5% | $111,840 | 453 |
| 54 | Shawnee | 67,671 | 5.9% | $100,649 | 4,006 |
| 55 | Prairie Village | 22,922 | 4.8% | $99,691 | 1,111 |
| 56 | Goddard | 5,119 | 1.2% | $87,385 | 62 |
| 57 | Olathe | 142,114 | 6.1% | $108,077 | 8,640 |
| 58 | De Soto | 6,248 | 5.9% | $102,685 | 366 |
| 59 | Lenexa | 57,497 | 5.8% | $101,074 | 3,352 |
| 60 | Lansing | 11,254 | 4.6% | $100,863 | 519 |
| 61 | Overland Park | 196,676 | 4.2% | $100,876 | 8,358 |
| 62 | Andover | 15,460 | 2.5% | $113,538 | 386 |
| 63 | Leawood | 33,784 | 2.4% | $174,779 | 793 |
I think you totally missed Manchester Kansas on this list. Either that, or you’re only looking at towns with names people would recognize. Some of the places on your list are tourist traps or college towns and only have income during those seasons. So yes I can understand where you are coming from but they should not be making the poorest list by any means.