About one in 17 people in Carroll County, Maryland, lives below the poverty line
In Carroll County, 5.8% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carroll County's score
In Carroll County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 61.8. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 5.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carroll 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.
Carroll 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.
- 61.8 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 rent21.6% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202753rd percentile
-
- 26.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.0% · August 202511th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people111.5 · 202541st percentile
-
- 15.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202620th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.5% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
-
- 11.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.3% · August 202514th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202514th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.3% · second quarter of 20265th percentile
-
- 5.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line5.8% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.4% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability12.4% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- People without health insurance2.9% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$114,927 · 20242nd 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 Carroll 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 Carroll County, 17.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carroll County
Maryland
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Carroll County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 349% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Carroll County, Maryland, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 6.7% in 2019 to 5.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 3.6% 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, Carroll County, Maryland.
How Carroll County has changed
Carroll County's population had its largest rise, from 104,078 in 1984 to 120,729 in 1989.
Carroll County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 177,108, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 168,993. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carroll County, Maryland.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Carroll County nearly doubled to 59,443, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 54,027. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carroll County, Maryland.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.6% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.8% | 2024 5.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $39,440 | 2024 $114,927 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Carroll County's history
2014
A thunderstorm in July 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A thunderstorm in July 2019 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 172,891, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A thunderstorm in August 2023 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A thunderstorm in August 2023 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1971
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carroll County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Carroll County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Carroll County, in Maryland and Pennsylvania, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Carroll County ranks 4th of the six; Adams County is highest, at 23.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore County, MD | 61 | 9.3% | 17.1% |
| York County, PA | 29 | 9.2% | 21.5% |
| Frederick County, MD | 19 | 5.3% | 13.0% |
| Adams County, PA | 15 | 7.7% | 23.2% |
| Carroll County, MD | 9 | 5.8% | 15.3% |
| Howard County, MD | 8 | 5.5% | 9.8% |
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 Carroll County the poorest county in Maryland?
No, Carroll County's poverty rate was 5.8% in 2024, 21st highest of 24 in Maryland (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Somerset County, at 20.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Carroll County ranks 23rd of 24 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carroll 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.
-
Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service (MVLS)
Legal aid
-
Maryland Legal Aid
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 Carroll 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 Carroll County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.