About one in 12 people in Sarasota County, Florida, lives below the poverty line
In Sarasota County, 8.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sarasota County's score
In Sarasota County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 96.4. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 28.4. About one in three people (31.7%, Q2 2026) has a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 81% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sarasota 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, Sarasota County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (31.5%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (28.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 96.4 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 rent28.4% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income31.5% · fiscal year 202798th percentile
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- 55.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202680th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.6% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
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- 37.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.1% · August 202522nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people130.3 · 202551st percentile
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- 31.2 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 line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability15.1% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- People without health insurance9.9% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,367 · 202415th percentile
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- 28.4 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 behind4.3% · August 202535th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.7% · second quarter of 202618th 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 Sarasota 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 Sarasota County, 37.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sarasota County
Florida
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sarasota County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 19.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Sarasota County, Florida, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sarasota County getting SNAP food aid rose most from 4.2% in 2010 to 6.8% in 2012, 1.3 points each year.
The share of households in Sarasota County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 5.2%
Low on the chart: 3.4% 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, Sarasota County, Florida.
How Sarasota County has changed
Sarasota County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 427,872 in 2019 to 476,604 in 2024.
Sarasota County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 476,604, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 393,358. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sarasota County, Florida.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Sarasota County nearly doubled to 194,499, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 194,499. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sarasota County, Florida.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.8% | 2024 8.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,947 | 2024 $83,367 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 5.0% 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 Sarasota County's history
1921
Created in 1921 from the southern part of Manatee County. Wikipedia
1985
A tornado in March 1985 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in December 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A tornado in January 2016 did $12 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A flood in August 2017 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 434,006, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1968
45 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sarasota County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sarasota County beside its neighbors
All three counties that border Sarasota County score higher than it does. Of the group, Sarasota County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; DeSoto County gets the largest, at 36.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| DeSoto County, FL | 93 | 21.8% | 36.9% |
| Charlotte County, FL | 67 | 9.3% | 32.8% |
| Manatee County, FL | 61 | 9.8% | 21.4% |
| Sarasota County, FL | 49 | 8.6% | 19.2% |
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 Sarasota County the poorest county in Florida?
No, Sarasota County's poverty rate was 8.6% in 2024, 65th 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, Sarasota County ranks 59th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sarasota 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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Bay Area 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 Sarasota 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 Sarasota County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.