About one in nine people in San Diego County, California, has a disability
In San Diego County, 11.1% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives San Diego County's score
In San Diego County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 96.2. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 18.0. The typical household earns $108,754 a year (2024), more than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in San Diego County: 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.
Even so, San Diego County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (31.2%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (28.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 96.2 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 rent28.3% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income31.2% · fiscal year 202797th percentile
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- 53.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.9% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
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- 41.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.0% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people162.1 · 202563rd percentile
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- 25.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.2% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.9% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.6% · second quarter of 202618th percentile
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- 18.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.1% · 202423rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.2% · 202418th percentile
- People with a disability11.1% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$108,754 · 20243rd 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 San Diego County 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 San Diego County, 15.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
San Diego County
California
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In San Diego County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In San Diego County, California, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in San Diego County getting SNAP food aid more than tripled to 9.9%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2023 to 2024, reaching 9.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, San Diego County, California.
How San Diego County has changed
San Diego County's population had its largest rise, from 2,066,419 in 1984 to 2,444,380 in 1989.
San Diego County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 3,298,799, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 3,298,799. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, San Diego County, California.
The number of jobs located in San Diego County rose most sharply after its 1995 low, from 980,995 in 1995 to 1,198,842 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in San Diego County rose by about half to 1,535,067, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 1,535,067 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, San Diego County, California.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.1% | 2024 10.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,627 | 2024 $108,754 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in San Diego County's history
1996
A wildfire in October 1996 did $37.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A flood in December 2002 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A wildfire in October 2003 did $1.04 billion in property damage and killed 14 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A wildfire in October 2003 did $55.22 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 3,298,634, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
33 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered San Diego County, 22 of them for flooding. FEMA
San Diego County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border San Diego County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, San Diego County ranks 3rd of the four; Imperial County is highest, at 30.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial County, CA | 89 | 18.8% | 30.0% |
| Riverside County, CA | 70 | 9.8% | 21.3% |
| San Diego County, CA | 44 | 10.1% | 16.2% |
| Orange County, CA | 36 | 9.7% | 12.5% |
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 San Diego County the poorest county in California?
No, San Diego County's poverty rate was 10.1% in 2024, 42nd highest of 58 in California (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Trinity County, at 23.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, San Diego County ranks 39th of 58 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in San Diego County
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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Credit.org - National City
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Money Management International - San Diego
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Navicore Solutions- San Diego, CA
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid Society of San Diego
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 San Diego County · 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 San Diego County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.