Female-headed households are more likely to be in poverty, especially if children are present. These differences can signal gender disparities in access to income or employment.

In 2018-22, 12% of households were headed by females, virtually unchanged from 2008-12. This was on par with the the national rate of 12% and slightly below the statewide rate of 14%. Westchester County's rate was slightly higher than Nassau, Rockland, and Putnam Counties (all 11%). Mount Vernon has the highest rate of single female-headed households, at 24%.

The multiyear figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined 5 years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. However, because the information came from a survey, the samples responding to the survey were not always large enough to produce reliable results, especially in small geographic areas. CGR has noted on data tables the estimates with relatively large margins of error. Estimates with 3 asterisks have the largest margins, plus or minus 50% or more of the estimate. Two asterisks mean plus or minus 35%-50%, and one asterisk means plus or minus 20%-35%. For all estimates, the confidence level is 90%, meaning there is 90% probability the true value (if the whole population were surveyed) would be within the margin of error (or confidence interval). The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Data for this indicator is expected to be released annually in December.