Unemployment in Sagadahoc County, Maine, is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Sagadahoc County, 2.6% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 88% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sagadahoc County's score
In Sagadahoc County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 67.5. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 10.9. People with a car or retail loan behind: 1.4%, August 2025, lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sagadahoc 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, Sagadahoc County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 67.5 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 rent19.1% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.1% · fiscal year 202779th percentile
-
- 17.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.8% · 20247th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.8% · 202412th percentile
- People with a disability13.7% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
- People without health insurance5.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$82,454 · 202417th percentile
-
- 16.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.0% · August 202530th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people32 · 20253rd percentile
-
- 13.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.1% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
-
- 10.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.8% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.4% · August 20252nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.6% · second quarter of 20267th percentile
-
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 Sagadahoc 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 Sagadahoc County, 24.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sagadahoc County
Maine
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sagadahoc County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Sagadahoc County, Maine, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sagadahoc County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 10.4% in 2011 to 12.5% in 2012.
The share of households in Sagadahoc County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 8.7%
Low on the chart: 7.8% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sagadahoc County, Maine.
How Sagadahoc County has changed
Sagadahoc County's population nearly doubled to 37,582, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 32,949. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sagadahoc County, Maine.
The number of jobs located in Sagadahoc County had its largest drop, from 18,613 in 1990 to 15,345 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Sagadahoc County fell 8% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 15,132 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sagadahoc County, Maine.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 2.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.4% | 2024 7.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,785 | 2024 $82,454 |
The table uses 2.7% for 2025; the score uses 2.6% 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 Sagadahoc County's history
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 36,699, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1970
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sagadahoc County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sagadahoc County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Sagadahoc County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sagadahoc County ranks 4th of the five; Androscoggin County is highest, at 26.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Androscoggin County, ME | 47 | 12.0% | 26.9% |
| Kennebec County, ME | 28 | 11.2% | 25.5% |
| Sagadahoc County, ME | 11 | 7.8% | 21.3% |
| Lincoln County, ME | 10 | 9.9% | 23.9% |
| Cumberland County, ME | 8 | 8.0% | 15.4% |
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 Sagadahoc County the poorest county in Maine?
No, Sagadahoc County's poverty rate was 7.8% in 2024, 15th 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, Sagadahoc County ranks 14th of 16 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sagadahoc 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.
-
Pine Tree Legal Assistance
Legal aid
-
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 Sagadahoc 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 Sagadahoc County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.