The connection between poverty and lack of access to broadband service has been researched many times over the past decade, particularly in the last four years since the onset of the global pandemic. In the latest report by Next Century Cities, The Metrics that Drive and Divide Us, additional data from the American Community Survey (ACS) and the Census further reveal the correlation between individuals living in poverty and those who do not have an Internet subscription. 

The report examines over 270 cities, counties, towns, municipalities, and parishes, five U.S. territories, and all 50 states, with a special focus on the communities with the least correlation between broadband adoption and poverty rates. In this focused view, five mutually exclusive categories erupted, with greater than a ten percent difference between poverty and residents without an Internet subscription – 1) High poverty areas; 2) cities with a college or university; 3) rural areas; 4) communities with municipal broadband; 5) U.S. territories. 

Based on increased understanding of these five categories, it is imperative that investments are made in community-owned broadband and middle-mile networks, and that additional resources and funding are available to local leaders and communities. Affordable solutions to high-quality broadband subscriptions are the only ways that communities like these can increase access and close the digital divide.

Explore the facts and figures from Broadband Affordability: The Metrics that Drive and Divide Us. The full report is available here.