About one in 10 people in Santa Rosa County, Florida, lives below the poverty line
In Santa Rosa County, 10.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 75% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives Santa Rosa County's score
In Santa Rosa County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 68.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 34.8. The typical household earns $88,354 a year (2024), more than in 87% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Santa Rosa 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, Santa Rosa County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (4.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202676th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.2% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 50.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.2% · August 202546th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people137.8 · 202555th percentile
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- 45.8 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202753rd percentile
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- 35.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.4% · August 202537th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.8% · second quarter of 202624th percentile
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- 34.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.3% · 202424th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.5% · 202425th percentile
- People with a disability15.4% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- People without health insurance10.2% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$88,354 · 202412th 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 Santa Rosa 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 Santa Rosa County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Santa Rosa County
Florida
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Santa Rosa County had its largest rise, from 14.8% in 2004 to 17.5% in 2009.
In Santa Rosa County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 21.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Santa Rosa County, Florida, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 21.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Santa Rosa County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 11.3% in 2018 to 10.0% in 2019.
The share of households in Santa Rosa County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 8.5% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Santa Rosa County, Florida.
How Santa Rosa County has changed
Santa Rosa County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 184,546 in 2019 to 207,653 in 2024.
Santa Rosa County's population grew to about six times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 207,653, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 45,974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Santa Rosa County, Florida.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Santa Rosa County more than doubled to 44,562, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 31,932. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Santa Rosa County, Florida.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.6% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.5% | 2024 10.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,352 | 2024 $88,354 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Santa Rosa County's history
1842
Created in 1842. Wikipedia
1962
A tornado in March 1962 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed 17 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A rip current in July 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Lightning in June 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in April 2014 did $16 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 188,000, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1970
42 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Santa Rosa County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Santa Rosa County beside its neighbors
All three counties that border Santa Rosa County, in Florida and Alabama, score higher than it does. Of the group, Santa Rosa County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Escambia County gets the largest, at 34.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Escambia County, AL | 89 | 19.7% | 34.1% |
| Escambia County, FL | 88 | 14.5% | 25.9% |
| Okaloosa County, FL | 51 | 10.6% | 22.5% |
| Santa Rosa County, FL | 44 | 10.3% | 21.5% |
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 Santa Rosa County the poorest county in Florida?
No, Santa Rosa County's poverty rate was 10.3% in 2024, 54th 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, Santa Rosa County ranks 64th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Santa Rosa 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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Legal Services of North Florida
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 Santa Rosa 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 Santa Rosa County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.