Mexico | Labor poverty reaches a new record low since 2005-Q1 and stands at 32.3%

Summary

This note contains various indicators of labor poverty as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2025 (based on the latest figures updated by Inegi). Labor poverty is defined as the percentage of the population whose per capita labor income is insufficient to cover the cost of the basic food basket.

Key points

• Key points:
• In the fourth quarter of 2025 (2025-Q4), rural labor poverty reached a new record low since 2005-Q1, standing at 46.6% of the population. In contrast, urban labor poverty stood at 28.1%, the third-lowest level in the series.
• In 2025-Q4, 10.4% of the employed population was in labor poverty; this proportion was 13.2% among women and 8.4% among men. In the same period, women earned on average 19.9% less than men, the same figure reported in 2025-Q3
• Ciudad Juárez (14.2%), Cancún (14.3%), Tijuana (14.4%), and La Paz (15.6%) are the cities with the lowest levels of labor poverty, while Tapachula (40.0%), Veracruz (37.3%), Cuernavaca (35.8%), Tlaxcala (35.6%), and Coatzacoalcos (35.2%) have the highest rates.
• Querétaro (36.2% to 17.5%), Aguascalientes (39.6% to 26.2%), and Cuernavaca (48.7% to 35.8%) are the cities that have achieved the greatest reductions in labor poverty over the last 3 years.

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