Socioeconomic factors

Poverty is associated with increased rates of teenage pregnancy. Economically poor countries such as Niger and Bangladesh have far more teenage mothers compared with economically rich countries such as Switzerland and Japan.

In the UK, around half of all pregnancies to under 18s are concentrated among the 30% most deprived population, with only 14% occurring among the 30% least deprived. In Italy, the teenage birth rate in the well-off central regions is only 3.3 per 1,000, while in the poorer Mezzogiorno it is 10.0 per 1000.Sociologist Mike A. Males noted that teenage birth rates closely mapped poverty rates in California:

Teen pregnancy costs the United States over $7 billion annually.

County	Poverty rate	Birth rate*
Marin County	5%	5
Tulare County (Caucasians)	18%	50
Tulare County (Hispanics)	40%	100

* per 1000 women aged 15-19

There is little evidence to support the common belief that teenage mothers become pregnant to get benefits, welfare, and council housing. Most knew little about housing or financial aid before they got pregnant and what they thought they knew often turned out to be wrong.