Question
What is the difference between homeless and unhoused?
Short answer
Federal rules use the word homeless, and they define it in four categories at 24 CFR 578.3. Many people and many organizations prefer unhoused. Our own recommendation Lead Me Home describes people living unhoused in cities across the West Coast. The word changes, the federal definition does not.
Where this answer comes from
Homelessness
On a single night in January 2025, 745,652 people in the United States had no home of their own, and 266,320 of them were sleeping outside. In this section, we look at solutions to homelessness and the people working every day to help restore dignity and a safe place to call home.
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