Poverty and living standards in Catamarca, Argentina: official figures
37.3% of people in Catamarca lived below the poverty line in the first half of 2026 (INDEC EPH), 9th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; across the 31 survey areas the rate was 32.3%. That is about 89,000 people.
Is poverty rising in Catamarca?
The poverty rate in Catamarca was 34.0% in the first half of 2025 and 37.3% in the first half of 2026, up 3.3 percentage points; for all 31 survey areas it moved from 31.6% to 32.3%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Catamarca are poor?
30.2% of households in Catamarca were below the poverty line in the first half of 2026, joint 3rd highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site (all 31 survey areas: 24.4%). People in poor households were a larger share of residents (37.3%) than poor households were of households, because poor households are larger.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyWhat is the extreme poverty rate in Catamarca?
8.3% of people in Catamarca (about 20,000) were below the extreme-poverty line, which only counts food, in the first half of 2026, 9th highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; the 31-area rate was 7.5%; a year earlier Catamarca's rate was 7.3%. INDEC flags this estimate as imprecise (coefficient of variation 19.3%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Catamarca are in extreme poverty?
6.6% of households in Catamarca were below the extreme-poverty line in the first half of 2026 (all 31 survey areas: 5.6%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many people in Catamarca live in informal settlements?
0.0% of households in Catamarca were in a "villa de emergencia" (informal settlement) in the first quarter of 2026, joint lowest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; across the 31 survey areas the share was 1.1%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many homes in Catamarca are overcrowded?
3.4% of households in Catamarca had critical overcrowding (more than three people per room) in the first quarter of 2026, 2nd highest of 30 Argentine cities on this site (all 31 survey areas: 1.8%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many homes in Catamarca are near rubbish dumps or flood zones?
3.4% of households in Catamarca were within three blocks of a rubbish dump and 3.0% were in a flood-prone area in the first quarter of 2026 (INDEC EPH); the 31-area shares were 5.1% and 7.8%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow Catamarca compares with other cities in Argentina
People below the poverty line (H1 2026)
Catamarca ranks 9 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 38.5% |
| 7 | La Rioja | 38.4% |
| 8 | La Plata | 37.8% |
| 9 | Catamarca | 37.3% |
| 10 | Comodoro Rivadavia-Rada Tilly | 37.2% |
| 11 | Mendoza | 36.9% |
| 12 | San Juan | 36.8% |
Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) (H1 2026 vs H1 2025)
Catamarca ranks 12 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Corrientes | +3.6 pts |
| 10 | Ushuaia-Río Grande | +3.6 pts |
| 11 | Mendoza | +3.4 pts |
| 12 | Catamarca | +3.3 pts |
| 13 | Bahía Blanca-Cerri | +3.1 pts |
| 14 | Santa Fé | +2.8 pts |
| 15 | La Plata | +2.6 pts |
People below the extreme-poverty line (H1 2026)
Catamarca ranks 9 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the extreme-poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | La Plata | 9.2% |
| 7 | Corrientes | 8.6% |
| 8 | Buenos Aires | 8.4% |
| 9 | Catamarca | 8.3% |
| 10 | Posadas | 8.2% |
| 11 | Mendoza | 7.3% |
| 12 | Córdoba | 7.0% |
Households in informal settlements (Q1 2026)
Catamarca ranks 26 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households in informal settlements |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | Neuquén-Plottier | 0.0% |
| 24 | Formosa | 0.0% |
| 25 | La Rioja | 0.0% |
| 26 | Catamarca | 0.0% |
| 27 | Ushuaia-Río Grande | 0.0% |
| 28 | Rawson-Trelew-Playa Unión | 0.0% |
| 29 | Santa Rosa-Toay | 0.0% |
Households with critical overcrowding (Q1 2026)
Catamarca ranks 2 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households with critical overcrowding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Concordia | 4.2% |
| 2 | Catamarca | 3.4% |
| 3 | Tucumán-Tafí Viejo | 2.7% |
| 4 | La Plata | 2.6% |
| 5 | Córdoba | 2.6% |
| 6 | Formosa | 2.5% |
| 7 | La Rioja | 2.5% |
More on Catamarca: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · all cities in Argentina
Sources
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC): Encuesta Permanente de Hogares (EPH): bases de microdatos usuarias, individual y hogar, primer trimestre de 2026 (figures computed with the survey weights), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d9d23945d4b1…)
- Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC): Incidencia de la pobreza y la indigencia en 31 aglomerados urbanos, primer semestre de 2026 (Tables 4.1 and 4.2), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d944f84c823a…)
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