About one in 12 people in Nassau County, Florida, lives below the poverty line
In Nassau County, 8.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Nassau County's score
In Nassau County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 77.3. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 27.5. The typical household earns $94,297 a year (2024), more than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Nassau 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, Nassau County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (29.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.3 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 rent29.0% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202758th percentile
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- 57.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202671st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.7% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
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- 48.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.7% · August 202540th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people139.9 · 202556th percentile
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- 34.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.4% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.1% · second quarter of 202619th percentile
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- 27.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.7% · 202413th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability16.2% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- People without health insurance7.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$94,297 · 20247th 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 Nassau 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 Nassau County, 23.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Nassau County
Florida
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Nassau County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 18.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Nassau County, Florida, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Nassau County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.2% in 2011 to 9.0% in 2012.
The share of households in Nassau County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 6.9%
Low on the chart: 6.9% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Nassau County, Florida.
How Nassau County has changed
Nassau County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 88,445 in 2019 to 104,376 in 2024.
Nassau County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 104,376, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 76,245. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Nassau County, Florida.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Nassau County more than doubled to 27,745, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 27,745. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Nassau County, Florida.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.8% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.2% | 2024 8.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,161 | 2024 $94,297 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Nassau County's history
1824
Created in 1824 from Duval County. Wikipedia
1998
A rip current in August 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A rip current in May 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A rip current in September 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A rip current in July 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 90,352, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
38 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Nassau County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Nassau County beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Nassau County, in Florida and Georgia, score higher than it does. Of the group, Nassau County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Charlton County gets the largest, at 34.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlton County, GA | 91 | 20.4% | 34.2% |
| Duval County, FL | 84 | 12.2% | 20.2% |
| Camden County, GA | 64 | 11.1% | 25.9% |
| Baker County, FL | 61 | 13.0% | 26.8% |
| Nassau County, FL | 48 | 8.7% | 18.5% |
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 Nassau County the poorest county in Florida?
No, Nassau County's poverty rate was 8.7% in 2024, 64th highest of 67 in Florida (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Hamilton County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Nassau County ranks 60th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Nassau 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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Three Rivers Legal Services
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 Nassau 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 Nassau County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.