Housing costs keep climbing faster than wages in many parts of the U.S., putting extra pressure on low-income renters.

This visualization, via Visual Capitalist’s Pallavi Rao, maps all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico by how many low-income renters receive federal housing assistance relative to their population.

Data is sourced from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Policy Development and Research (HUD).

HUD’s 2024 estimates count more than 9 million Americans (27 per 1,000) currently receiving vouchers, public-housing units, or other subsidies.

Households typically pay 30% of their adjusted income (i.e. after taxes) as rent, and the government covers the rest.

Ranked: Americans Needing Rental Assistance, by State

D.C. stands out with 72 assisted renters per 1,000 residents.

That’s more than double the U.S. average of 27 and reflects both DC’s high housing costs, its population growth since 2000, and the limited growth in housing in the same time period.

Rank
State
Code
# of People on
Housing Assistance
(2024)
State Population
# of People on
Housing Assistance
per 1,000 Residents
1
District of Columbia
DC
50,389
702,250
72
2
Puerto Rico
PR
196,165
3,203,295
61
3
Rhode Island
RI
58,640
1,112,308
53
4
New York
NY
1,000,730
19,867,248
50
5
Massachusetts
MA
346,968
7,136,171
49
6
Connecticut
CT
148,989
3,675,069
41
7
Mississippi
MS
115,391
2,943,045
39
8
Louisiana
LA
178,836
4,597,740
39
9
Alabama
AL
175,759
5,157,699
34
10
Ohio
OH
392,408
11,883,304
33
11
Vermont
VT
21,313
648,493
33
12
Kentucky
KY
150,525
4,588,372
33
13
Hawaii
HI
47,342
1,446,146
33
14
Illinois
IL
392,302
12,710,158
31
15
New Jersey
NJ
289,801
9,500,851
31
16
Maryland
MD
187,764
6,263,220
30
17
West Virginia
WV
52,826
1,769,979
30
18
Maine
ME
41,698
1,405,012
30
19
Minnesota
MN
165,434
5,793,151
29
20
Pennsylvania
PA
366,433
13,078,751
28
21
Arkansas
AR
82,678
3,088,354
27
22
Tennessee
TN
193,490
7,227,750
27
23
North Dakota
ND
19,271
796,568
24
24
New Hampshire
NH
33,811
1,409,032
24
25
Michigan
MI
242,304
10,140,459
24
26
Missouri
MO
147,635
6,245,466
24
27
California
CA
918,612
39,431,263
23
28
Georgia
GA
259,256
11,180,878
23
29
Oklahoma
OK
92,093
4,095,393
22
30
South Carolina
SC
122,225
5,478,831
22
31
Nebraska
NE
44,628
2,005,465
22
32
Virginia
VA
194,664
8,811,195
22
33
Oregon
OR
93,896
4,272,371
22
34
Delaware
DE
22,865
1,051,917
22
35
South Dakota
SD
19,928
924,669
22
36
Washington
WA
170,021
7,958,180
21
37
North Carolina
NC
223,353
11,046,024
20
38
Indiana
IN
137,552
6,924,275
20
39
Wisconsin
WI
118,308
5,960,975
20
40
New Mexico
NM
40,853
2,130,256
19
41
Alaska
AK
14,146
740,133
19
42
Texas
TX
595,361
31,290,831
19
43
Colorado
CO
113,116
5,957,493
19
44
Iowa
IA
60,330
3,241,488
19
45
Montana
MT
20,172
1,137,233
18
46
Florida
FL
405,398
23,372,215
17
47
Kansas
KS
49,535
2,970,606
17
48
Nevada
NV
50,441
3,267,467
15
49
Wyoming
WY
8,663
587,618
15
50
Arizona
AZ
85,458
7,582,384
11
51
Idaho
ID
20,902
2,001,619
10
52
Utah
UT
32,862
3,503,613
9
N/A
U.S.
USA
9,039,779
340,110,988
27

Puerto Rico places second at 61 per 1,000—a legacy of limited job opportunities and post-hurricane rebuilding needs—while Rhode Island rounds out the top three at 53.

One study found that a minimum wage worker in Rhode Island must work an 85-hour workweek to afford a standard two-bedroom apartment.

ℹ️ Related: Puerto Rico also has the highest share of residents on welfare. Rhode Island is 10th and DC is 12th.

States With the Fewest Americans on Housing Assistance

Roughly half of U.S. states cluster between 20 and 30 assisted renters per 1,000 residents.

This middle group includes Midwestern states like Minnesota (29) and Michigan (24) as well as fast-growing Sun Belt hubs such as Georgia (23).

At the lower end, Western states Idaho (10) and Utah (9) report the fewest recipients per 1,000 residents. Part of that gap reflects younger demographics and higher home-ownership rates.

ℹ️ Related: Idaho ranks 16th and Utah 18th by home ownership rates, both higher than 70%.

But the eligibility to qualify for federal rental assistance varies by county and household size. Low numbers can also signal unmet needs or where waitlists run long.

Americans On Housing Assistance by Pure Numbers

When we shift from per-capita rates to raw counts, America’s largest states unsurprisingly dominate.

New York alone supports one million low-income renters, roughly equal to the combined totals of the bottom 10 states.

California follows closely with 919,000 recipients, reflecting the state’s chronic affordability crunch. Texas (595,000) and Florida (405,000) also rank high—even though their per-capita rates sit near the national average.

Wondering how much money the HUD is paying out on average per renter? Check out Where Rent Subsidies Are Highest, by U.S. State on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.