Benefit checks make up 35 cents of every dollar of income in Somerset County, Maine
In Somerset County, 35.3% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Somerset County's score
In Somerset County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 68.9. About one in four adults aged 25 to 54 (24.4%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a higher share than in 70% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 67.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Somerset 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.
Somerset County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (44.8, 2025) and people with a car or retail loan behind (2.8%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.9 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202666th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.4% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
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- 67.4 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 rent18.6% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.7% · fiscal year 202782nd percentile
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- 61.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.5% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.1% · 202455th percentile
- People with a disability19.4% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- People without health insurance7.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,314 · 202469th percentile
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- 37.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.1% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people44.8 · 20257th percentile
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- 34.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.2% · second quarter of 202642nd 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 Somerset 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 Somerset County, 23.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Somerset County
Maine
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Somerset County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 35.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Somerset County, Maine, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Somerset County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 22.8% in 2019 to 19.9% in 2020.
The share of households in Somerset County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 17.6% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Somerset County, Maine.
How Somerset County has changed
Somerset County's population had its largest rise, from 42,575 in 1974 to 45,317 in 1979.
Somerset County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 51,338
High on the chart: 52,104 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Somerset County, Maine.
The number of jobs located in Somerset County had its largest rise, from 17,259 in 1995 to 19,815 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Somerset County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 19,815 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Somerset County, Maine.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.9% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.0% | 2024 14.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,863 | 2024 $60,314 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Somerset County's history
2000
A flood in July 2000 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 52,228. The 2020 Census counted 50,477, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2023
A flood in December 2023 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flood in December 2023 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Somerset County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Somerset County beside its neighbors
Somerset County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Somerset County ranks 2nd of the seven; Piscataquis County is highest, at 35.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somerset County, ME | 56 | 14.5% | 35.3% |
| Aroostook County, ME | 54 | 14.9% | 35.3% |
| Piscataquis County, ME | 52 | 14.0% | 35.8% |
| Penobscot County, ME | 44 | 14.2% | 27.7% |
| Waldo County, ME | 35 | 11.1% | 28.3% |
| Franklin County, ME | 34 | 13.3% | 31.1% |
| Kennebec County, ME | 28 | 11.2% | 25.5% |
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 Somerset County the poorest county in Maine?
No, Somerset County's poverty rate was 14.5% in 2024, 3rd 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, Somerset County ranks 2nd of 16 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Somerset 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 Somerset 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 Somerset County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.