In Sitka City and Borough, Alaska, benefit checks make up only 17 cents of every dollar of income
In Sitka City and Borough, 16.7% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sitka City and Borough's score
In Sitka City and Borough, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 40.7. Jobs are the lowest part, at 14.8. Unemployment averaged 3.0%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sitka City and Borough: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Sitka City and Borough isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 40.7 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent13.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
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- 34.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.6% · 202412th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.2% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance10.1% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$91,990 · 20249th percentile
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- 18.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202535th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.7% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.5% · second quarter of 202614th percentile
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- 15.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.7% · August 202525th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people12.1 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 14.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202613th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.1% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Sitka City and Borough comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Sitka City and Borough, 17.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sitka City and Borough
Alaska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sitka City and Borough, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1979, reaching 16.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Sitka City and Borough, Alaska, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1979 to 2024, reaching 16.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sitka City and Borough getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 11.9% in 2013 to 9.7% in 2014.
The share of households in Sitka City and Borough getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 7.5%
Low on the chart: 6.2% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sitka City and Borough, Alaska.
How Sitka City and Borough has changed
Sitka City and Borough's population rose most sharply from its first year (7,652 in 1979) to 8,260 in 1984.
Sitka City and Borough's population was at its highest on the chart in 1994 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 9,073 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sitka City and Borough, Alaska.
The number of jobs located in Sitka City and Borough had its largest rise in the last span, from 3,675 in 2020 to 4,464 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Sitka City and Borough fell to its lowest on the chart in 2020, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 3,675 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sitka City and Borough, Alaska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.2% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.6% | 2024 8.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $39,392 | 2024 $91,990 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Sitka City and Borough's history
1929
Filipino community established in Sitka and institutionalized. Wikipedia
1971
Incorporated November 5, 1913 as city, September 24, 1963 as borough, December 2, 1971 as unified municipality. Wikipedia
1993
Alaska Pulp Corporation mill closed. Wikipedia
2009
A flood in May 2009 did $1.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in May 2009 did $1.9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in May 2009 did $7.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 8,881. The 2020 Census counted 8,458, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A flood in May 2013 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 2020
2 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sitka City and Borough. FEMA
Sitka City and Borough beside its neighbors
All two counties that border Sitka City and Borough score higher than it does. Of the group, Sitka City and Borough gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area gets the largest, at 28.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, AK | 57 | 16.9% | 28.2% |
| Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK | 53 | 16.8% | 25.9% |
| Sitka City and Borough, AK | 10 | 8.6% | 16.7% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Sitka City and Borough the poorest county in Alaska?
No, Sitka City and Borough's poverty rate was 8.6% in 2024, 23rd highest of 30 in Alaska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Kusilvak Census Area, at 34.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Sitka City and Borough ranks 28th of 30 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sitka City and Borough
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC)
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Sitka City and Borough · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Sitka City and Borough comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.