Nearly 327,000 in U.S. Lived in Emergency and Transitional Shelters

Figure 1 shows the share of the sheltered population experiencing homelessness and the population in households and other living quarters (people who lived in households and in group quarters other than emergency shelters) by different demographic groups.

Among the sheltered population experiencing homelessness: 40% were female; 8% were under the age of 18; 8% were age 65 or over; 32% were non-Hispanic White; 37% were non-Hispanic Black; and 35% had a disability.

Figure 2 shows the labor market characteristics of both the sheltered population experiencing homelessness and the population in households and other living quarters.

Among the sheltered population age 16 and over experiencing homelessness, nearly 15% were unemployed and an additional 61% were not in the labor force. That means only about 25% of this population was employed compared to nearly 60% of the population in households and other living quarters.

Among the sheltered population age 25 and over experiencing homelessness, nearly 25% did not have a high school degree and just over 7% had a bachelor’s degree or higher. Low educational attainment and high unemployment likely contributed to a poverty rate over six times higher (76.5%) than for the population in households and other living quarters (12.5%).

Also important to note: nearly one quarter of people experiencing homelessness and living in shelters were not in poverty.

The national poverty rate in 2018-2022 was 12.53%. When excluding the sheltered population experiencing homelessness, the poverty rate was 12.47%, which is not significantly different statistically.

There was a lot of variation in both the number and rate of the population experiencing homelessness in shelters in each state in 2018-2022.

The sheltered population ranged from a low of 173 people in Wyoming to a high of 83,550 people in New York. In fact, four states accounted for over 50% of the total U.S. sheltered population experiencing homelessness: New York (83,550); California (57,700); Texas (15,340); and Florida (13,260).

While 10 out of every 10,000 people lived in a shelter nationally, this rate ranged from a low of 1.5 in Mississippi to a high of 61.5 in the District of Columbia (Figure 3). 

Figure 4 shows the ratio of the state share of the U.S. sheltered population to the state share of the total U.S. population. This tells us whether the share of the sheltered population experiencing homelessness in each state was higher or lower than the share of the total U.S. population in each state.

For example, New York had a ratio of 4.23 with about 6% of the U.S. population, but over 25% of the total sheltered population experiencing homelessness. Conversely, Texas had a ratio of 0.53 with nearly 9% of the U.S. population, but only about 5% of the total sheltered population experiencing homelessness.

The share of the sheltered population experiencing homelessness was higher than the state’s share of the U.S. population in 10 states and the District of Columbia and lower in 35 states. The ratio of the two population shares was not significantly different in 5 states. 

Figure 5 shows which states had a significant change in sheltered populations experiencing homelessness per 10,000 people in 2018-2022 compared to the 2013-2017 period.

While the number increased nationally, it only rose in 10 states and the District of Columbia. The sheltered population experiencing homelessness per 10,000 people decreased in 17 states and did not change significantly in the other 23 states.