About one in 10 people in Lincoln County, Maine, lives below the poverty line
In Lincoln County, 9.9% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 78% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lincoln County's score
In Lincoln County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 32.4. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 13.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.4%, August 2025, lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lincoln 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.
Lincoln County 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.
- 32.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.9% · 202421st percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.8% · 202426th percentile
- People with a disability16.4% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.6% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$79,312 · 202421st percentile
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- 31.8 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 rent13.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202739th percentile
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- 30.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202623rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.8% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
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- 15.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.8% · August 202529th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people19.2 · 20250th percentile
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- 13.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.4% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.4% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.3% · second quarter of 202617th 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County, 29.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lincoln County
Maine
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lincoln County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 23.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Lincoln County, Maine, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 13.3% in 2019 to 10.9% in 2020.
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 7.9%
Low on the chart: 7.2% 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, Lincoln County, Maine.
How Lincoln County has changed
Lincoln County's population nearly doubled to 36,491, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 25,904. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lincoln County, Maine.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County rose 29% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 10,949. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lincoln County, Maine.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.1% | 2024 9.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,510 | 2024 $79,312 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lincoln County's history
2007
A flood in April 2007 did $1.9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
Lightning in July 2009 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 35,237, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1970
30 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lincoln County, 16 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lincoln County beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Lincoln County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lincoln County ranks 3rd of the five; Waldo County is highest, at 28.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waldo County, ME | 35 | 11.1% | 28.3% |
| Kennebec County, ME | 28 | 11.2% | 25.5% |
| Knox County, ME | 16 | 9.9% | 23.5% |
| Sagadahoc County, ME | 11 | 7.8% | 21.3% |
| Lincoln County, ME | 10 | 9.9% | 23.9% |
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 Lincoln County the poorest county in Maine?
No, Lincoln County's poverty rate was 9.9% in 2024, 12th highest of 16 in Maine (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Washington County, at 16.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lincoln County ranks 15th of 16 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lincoln 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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Pine Tree Legal Assistance
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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.