Asian and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Child Poverty and Economic Well-Being
Many indicators of socioeconomic status by race and ethnicity lump all Asian American (AA) and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) children together and, as a result of averaging out differences, they often suggest that these kids are doing better than others. In reality, the diverse AA and NHPI child populations experience vastly different socioeconomic outcomes.
To shed light on these differences, the KIDS COUNT® Data Center commissioned a special analysis of the latest data on child poverty and parental education levels disaggregated by AA and NHPI population. These data are available as five-year estimates for 2017–2021 from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.
Asian American Children in Poverty
As expected, when poverty data are broken out by specific population, the figures exposed wide disparities across groups. First, the difference between AA and NHPI children is stark: The NHPI child poverty rate is 22% — more than double the 10% rate for AA children.
Looking across AA populations, even wider disparities emerged. Nearly 1 in 3 (31%) Burmese American children and 1 in 4 (24%) Mongolian American children were living in poverty in 2017–2021, compared with 5% of Filipino American, Indian American and Taiwanese American kids. Poverty rates were also high among Thai American, Malaysian American, Bangladeshi American, Hmong American and Cambodian American children, with at least 1 in 5 kids in each group living below the poverty level.
Table One: Asian American Children Under 18 in Poverty, Disaggregated by Asian Subgroups (2017–2021)
Population |
Number |
Percent |
| Burmese | 20,502 | 30.9% |
| Mongolian | 1,209 | 24.3% |
| Thai | 5,887 | 22.8% |
| Bangladeshi | 12,807 | 22.1% |
| Hmong | 23,110 | 20.7% |
| Cambodian | 10,463 | 19.9% |
| Laotian | 5,883 | 18.2% |
| Pakistani | 25,274 | 17.6% |
| Nepalese | 7,318 | 14.8% |
| Vietnamese | 48,184 | 13.6% |
| Sri Lanken | 1,158 | 12.1% |
| Bhutanese | 856 | 12.1% |
| Chinese, except Taiwanese | 82,860 | 11.6% |
| Indonesian | 1,273 | 10.1% |
| Korean | 21,618 | 9.6% |
| Japanese | 5,761 | 7.7% |
| Filipino | 23,154 | 5.2% |
| Indian | 49,602 | 4.9% |
| Taiwanese | 1,530 | 4.9% |
Total for Asian American Children |
379,183 |
10.2% |
Note: Estimates shown have 90% confidence intervals with margins of error below five percentage points. Source: PRB analysis of 2017–2021 ACS PUMS 5‑year data.
The data revealed varying levels of poverty among NHPI groups, too. The lowest child poverty rate was 16% for Guamanian or Chamorro kids, about half the rate (31%) for Marshallese children.
Table Two: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Children Under 18 in Poverty, Disaggregated by Subgroups (2017–2021)
Population |
Number |
Percent |
| Marshallese | 4,126 | 31.2% |
| Samoan | 6,485 | 26.5% |
| Native Hawaiian | 7,693 | 19.0% |
| Fijian | 1,132 | 18.6% |
| Tongan | 1,693 | 17.6% |
| Guamanian or Chamorro | 2,390 | 15.6% |
Total for NHPI Children |
33,400 |
22.4% |
Note: Estimates shown have 90% confidence intervals with margins of error below five percentage points. Source: PRB analysis of 2017–2021 ACS PUMS 5‑year data.
All of these AA and NHPI kids are not, in fact, faring better than the national average or their peers in other racial and ethnic groups, as aggregated data suggest.
Asian American Children and Economic Well-Being
Other measures disaggregated by AA and NHPI population show substantial socioeconomic differences among groups as well:
Children Who Live in a Household Where the Household Head Did Not Complete High School:
As illustrated below from the KIDS COUNT Data Center’s commissioned analysis, 61% of Burmese children lived in a family where the head of household lacked a high school degree — almost seven times the average for all AA children (9%). Among NHPI groups, 1 in 4 (26%) Marshallese children had a head of household who did not complete high school, 2.5 times the NHPI average (10%).
Table Three: Asian American Children Who Live With a Head of Household that Did Not Complete High School, Disaggregated by Subgroups (2017–2021)
Population |
Percent of Children |
| Burmese | 61.3% |
| Bhutanese | 42.4% |
| Nepalese | 22.6% |
| Cambodian | 20.4% |
| Laotian | 18.7% |
| Vietnamese | 18.6% |
| Hmong | 16.7% |
| Thai | 15.2% |
| Malaysian | 15.1% |
| Chinese, except Taiwanese | 11.5% |
| Bangladeshi | 10.4% |
| Pakistani | 9.3% |
| Sri Lankan | 6.5% |
| Indonesian | 3.6% |
| Filipino | 3.5% |
| Indian | 3.4% |
| Mongolian | 2.5% |
| Japanese | 2.1% |
| Korean | 1.7% |
| Taiwanese | 1.5% |
Total for Asian American Children |
9.3% |
Note: Estimates included have 90% confidence intervals with margins of error below seven percentage points. Source: PRB analysis of 2017–2021 ACS PUMS 5‑year data.
Table Four: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Children Who Live With a Head of Household that Did Not Complete High School, Disaggregated by Subpopulation (2017–2021)
| Population | Percent of Children |
|---|---|
| Marshallese | 26.0% |
| Fijian | 10.4% |
| Guamanian or Chamorro | 6.4% |
| Samoan | 6.3% |
| Native Hawaiian | 6.3% |
| Tongan | 4.7% |
| Total for NHPI Children | 10.1% |
Note: Estimates included have 90% confidence intervals with margins of error below five percentage points. Source: PRB analysis of 2017–2021 ACS PUMS 5‑year data.
Children in Poverty Whose Parents Did Not Complete High School:
One in 3 (34%) Asian children whose parents did not finish high school live in poverty according to a 2021 report from the National Center for Education Statistics. Among Asian-alone populations with data, the share of these children in poverty whose parents did not complete high school was highest for:
- Thai (57%);
- Hmong (52%);
- Burmese (47%);
- Pakistani (43%);
- Nepalese (37%); and
- Cambodian (36%) children.
This figure was lowest for:
- Vietnamese (27%)
- Chinese (27%); and
- Indian (26%) children.
Among Pacific Islander kids whose parents did not finish high school, an alarming two-thirds (66%) were living in poverty (not disaggregated by population).
Unstable Housing
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that NHPI high school students were more likely than students of other racial and ethnic backgrounds to have unstable housing. This is defined as not having a usual place to sleep or sleeping in someone else’s home, in a shelter or emergency housing, in a motel, in a car or another public place during the past month. While these data are not disaggregated by specific population, they highlight concerning housing needs for NHPI families. The share of U.S. high schoolers with unstable housing was:
- Total: 3%;
- Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders: 10%; and
- Asian-alone: 1%.
These examples reinforce the need to disaggregate data by population — especially indicators by child or youth population — as they reveal the disparate conditions of children and families among Asian-alone and NHPI groups. By contrast, aggregated data for “Asian and Pacific Islander children” treats this incredibly heterogeneous group as a singular block and masks disparities among these populations. The data presented here clearly show that certain groups are facing greater socioeconomic needs, including NHPI families and, specifically, Marshallese, and Burmese, Mongolian and Bhutanese families. Leaders and service providers can use these data to inform policies and programs, strengthening outreach to populations with the greatest needs and ensuring that families receive adequate safety net support and other services.
A Note About Language
We use the term “Asian Americans” in this post to refer to both Asian immigrants and U.S. citizens of Asian descent, as the term reflects the vast majority of this population, especially among children.
