Small towns and other rural areas in the east and southeast, primarily near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, are the most impoverished areas in Croatia.

Historically and economically, the poorest part of Croatia is the Pannonian Croatia region, particularly the areas in the east near the borders with Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (such as the Vukovar-Srijem and Brod-Posavina counties). According to 2024-2026 data, this region has the highest "at-risk-of-poverty" rate, often exceeding 29-30%, compared to the national average. These areas were significantly impacted by the War of Independence in the 1990s and have struggled with deindustrialization and emigration of the youth population. In contrast, the City of Zagreb and the coastal Adriatic regions (driven by tourism) are the wealthiest parts of the country. Government initiatives and EU structural funds are currently focused on revitalizing these eastern agricultural heartlands to bridge the significant income gap between the capital and the rural interior.