Poverty and living standards in Salta, Argentina: official figures
29.7% of people in Salta lived below the poverty line in the first half of 2026 (INDEC EPH), 11th lowest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; across the 31 survey areas the rate was 32.3%. That is about 202,000 people.
Is poverty rising in Salta?
The poverty rate in Salta was 29.5% in the first half of 2025 and 29.7% in the first half of 2026, up 0.2 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 Salta are poor?
22.9% of households in Salta were below the poverty line in the first half of 2026, 12th lowest of 30 Argentine cities on this site (all 31 survey areas: 24.4%). People in poor households were a larger share of residents (29.7%) 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 Salta?
4.4% of people in Salta (about 30,000) were below the extreme-poverty line, which only counts food, in the first half of 2026, joint 10th lowest of 30 Argentine cities on this site; the 31-area rate was 7.5%; a year earlier Salta's rate was 4.1%. INDEC flags this estimate as imprecise (coefficient of variation 24.8%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many households in Salta are in extreme poverty?
3.5% of households in Salta were below the extreme-poverty line in the first half of 2026 (all 31 survey areas: 5.6%). INDEC flags this estimate as imprecise (coefficient of variation 21.5%).
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INDEC) · saved copyHow many people in Salta live in informal settlements?
0.0% of households in Salta 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 Salta are overcrowded?
0.6% of households in Salta had critical overcrowding (more than three people per room) in the first quarter of 2026, 5th lowest 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 Salta are near rubbish dumps or flood zones?
11.0% of households in Salta were within three blocks of a rubbish dump and 9.8% 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 Salta compares with other cities in Argentina
People below the poverty line (H1 2026)
Salta ranks 20 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Buenos Aires | 32.1% |
| 18 | Córdoba | 31.1% |
| 19 | Formosa | 29.9% |
| 20 | Salta | 29.7% |
| 21 | Tucumán-Tafí Viejo | 27.9% |
| 22 | San Salvador de Jujuy-Palpalá | 27.6% |
| 23 | Bahía Blanca-Cerri | 26.6% |
Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) (H1 2026 vs H1 2025)
Salta ranks 22 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Change in the poverty rate since H1 2025 (percentage points) |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | San Juan | +0.8 pts |
| 20 | Buenos Aires | +0.6 pts |
| 21 | Resistencia | +0.5 pts |
| 22 | Salta | +0.2 pts |
| 23 | Santa Rosa-Toay | -0.2 pts |
| 24 | Río Cuarto | -0.8 pts |
| 25 | Tucumán-Tafí Viejo | -2.9 pts |
People below the extreme-poverty line (H1 2026)
Salta ranks 21 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | People below the extreme-poverty line |
|---|---|---|
| 18 | Santa Rosa-Toay | 4.9% |
| 19 | La Rioja | 4.7% |
| 20 | Tucumán-Tafí Viejo | 4.4% |
| 21 | Salta | 4.4% |
| 22 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 3.9% |
| 23 | Comodoro Rivadavia-Rada Tilly | 3.7% |
| 24 | Río Cuarto | 3.2% |
Households in informal settlements (Q1 2026)
Salta ranks 19 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households in informal settlements |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | Mar del Plata-Batán | 0.3% |
| 17 | Resistencia | 0.3% |
| 18 | Comodoro Rivadavia-Rada Tilly | 0.1% |
| 19 | Salta | 0.0% |
| 20 | San Juan | 0.0% |
| 21 | Santa Fé | 0.0% |
| 22 | Santiago del Estero-La Banda | 0.0% |
Households with critical overcrowding (Q1 2026)
Salta ranks 26 of 30, highest first.
| Rank | City | Households with critical overcrowding |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | Neuquén-Plottier | 0.7% |
| 24 | San Salvador de Jujuy-Palpalá | 0.6% |
| 25 | Santa Rosa-Toay | 0.6% |
| 26 | Salta | 0.6% |
| 27 | Rosario | 0.5% |
| 28 | Posadas | 0.3% |
| 29 | Mar del Plata-Batán | 0.0% |
More on Salta: 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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