Key Terms

Household Survival Budget: The bare-minimum costs of basic necessities (housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, and a smartphone plan).

ALICE Threshold: The average income needed to afford the Household Survival Budget. Households below the ALICE Threshold include both ALICE and poverty-level households.

ALICE: Households with income above the Federal Poverty Level but below the basic cost of living.

Poverty: Households earning below the Federal Poverty Level

Total Households: The number of households as reported by the American Community Survey.

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Research Center

New Jersey

We all know people who are ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed — earning more than the Federal Poverty Level, but not enough to afford the basics where they live. ALICE workers were celebrated as essential heroes during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet they do not earn enough to support their own families.

ALICE households and households in poverty are forced to make tough choices, such as deciding between quality child care or paying the rent — choices that have long-term consequences not only for their families, but for all.

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New Jersey

ALICE State and County Demographics 2021

ALICE households include people of all genders, ages, and races/ethnicities, across all family types. However, some groups are more likely to be ALICE than others. Use the Demographics Tool below to explore levels of financial hardship in households across the state. The figures on this page show the number and percentage of households in each group with:

  • Income below the Federal Poverty Level (Poverty)
  • Income above the Federal Poverty Level but below what is needed to afford the cost of basic expenses (ALICE)
  • Income above the cost of basics (Above ALICE Threshold)

The figures below default to state data. Type one or more counties into the box below to filter the data by location. Click “X” to remove a county from the list.

Note: Groups with fewer than 100 households are suppressed (not shown) to maintain accuracy and confidentiality.

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  • NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS
  • PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS

Number of Households, New Jersey, 2021

Total Households
Total Households
Total Households
Total Households
Total Households
Total Households
Total Households
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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2010-2021; American Community Survey, 2010-2021

Percentage of Households, New Jersey, 2021

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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2010-2021; American Community Survey, 2010-2021

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See this data — and more — for all New Jersey counties on the County Reports page.

  • 2021 Data
  • Data Over Time

Families With Children, New Jersey, 2021

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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2021; American Community Survey, 2021

Families With Children Over Time, Below ALICE Threshold, 2010­-2021

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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2010 - 2021; American Community Survey, 2010 - 2021

Learn More

Dig deeper into the data on children, people with disabilities, and veterans via our ALICE in Focus Research Series.


  • 2021 Data
  • Data Over Time

Households by Age of Householder, New Jersey, 2021

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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2021; American Community Survey, 2021

Households by Age of Householder, Below ALICE Threshold, 2010­-2021

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Sources: ALICE Threshold, 2010-2021; American Community Survey, 2010-2021

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See this demographic data mapped along with key community resources on our Maps page


Households by Race/Ethnicity, New Jersey, 2021

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All racial categories except Two or More Races are for one race alone. Race and ethnicity are overlapping categories; the AI/AN (American Indian/Alaska Native), Asian, Black, Hawaiian (includes other Pacific Islanders), and Two or More Races groups may include Hispanic households. The White group includes only White, non-Hispanic households. The Hispanic group may include households of any race. Because household poverty data is not available for the American Community Survey's race/ethnicity categories, annual income below $15,000 is used as a proxy. In 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau changed how it asked about race/ethnicity and how responses are coded. Due to this change, the Census Bureau recommends caution in comparing racial/ethnic data from before and after 2020.
ALICE Threshold, 2021; American Community Survey, 2021

Learn More

United For ALICE fights for racial and economic equity — see our Commitment to Equity in Research.

Change over time in race/ethnicity between 2019 and 2021 is not included here due to changes the U.S. Census Bureau made to its questions on Hispanic origin and race, as well as coding adjustments, in 2020. These changes help the Census and ACS provide a more complete picture of the U.S. population, especially for people who self-identify as multiracial or multiethnic. But as a result, the Census urges caution when comparing race data between years before and after 2020. The biggest impact was on the Multiracial population (previously Two or More Races): The number of Multiracial households increased by 277% nationally from 2019 to 2021. This increase may have muted the increases in other racial/ethnic groups over the same period.