The information presented in the 2025 Missouri Poverty Report comes from reliable and valid sources, including publicly available datasets, peer-reviewed research, government publications, and data shared directly by community programs and CAAs. National data sources include the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, among others. Missouri-specific statistics were drawn from state agencies, local research institutions, and nonprofit organizations working in the field.
In addition to quantitative data, this report includes qualitative accounts and client stories provided by CAAs. These stories are shared with permission and offer valuable context to the statistical findings. Not all data could be included in this report; in some cases, information was unavailable, outdated, or excluded to protect individual privacy when the sample size was too small to ensure anonymity. Together, the data and stories aim to provide an accurate, nuanced understanding of poverty in Missouri, while recognizing that numbers alone cannot fully capture the lived experiences of those affected.