Unemployment in Dorchester County, Maryland, is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties
In Dorchester County, 4.8% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Dorchester County's score
In Dorchester County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 81.8. People with a credit card behind: 8.9%, August 2025, higher than in 90% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Dorchester 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.
Dorchester County does better than most counties on one measure: people without health insurance (5.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.9% · August 202590th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.6% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.4% · second quarter of 202668th percentile
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- 76.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.2% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people225.1 · 202581st percentile
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- 72.5 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 rent25.9% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202755th percentile
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- 66.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202676th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.6% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
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- 54.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.1% · 202457th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.6% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability16.7% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- People without health insurance5.5% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,476 · 202453rd 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 Dorchester 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 Dorchester 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
Dorchester County
Maryland
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Dorchester County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 31.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Dorchester County, Maryland, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Dorchester County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.5% in 2010 to 16.8% in 2011.
The share of households in Dorchester County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 21.0%
Low on the chart: 12.4% 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, Dorchester County, Maryland.
How Dorchester County has changed
Dorchester County's population rose 12% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 32,470. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Dorchester County, Maryland.
The number of jobs located in Dorchester County made its largest gain on the way to its 2005 high, from 11,198 in 2000 to 12,028 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Dorchester County was about the same in 2025 as in 1990
High on the chart: 12,028 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Dorchester County, Maryland.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.6% | 2024 14.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,677 | 2024 $65,476 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.8% 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 Dorchester County's history
1944
June 1944 tornado in Cambridge killed two, injured 33. Wikipedia
1984
May 1984 tornado in Hurlock killed one, injured six. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in May 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in May 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 32,618. The 2020 Census counted 32,531, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
2012
A thunderstorm in February 2012 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Dorchester County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Dorchester County beside its neighbors
Dorchester County scores higher than all four counties that border it, in Maryland and Delaware. Of the group, Dorchester County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (31.5%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorchester County, MD | 83 | 14.1% | 31.5% |
| Wicomico County, MD | 76 | 16.0% | 29.6% |
| Caroline County, MD | 60 | 11.1% | 27.8% |
| Sussex County, DE | 41 | 9.5% | 26.3% |
| Talbot County, MD | 25 | 9.9% | 17.6% |
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 Dorchester County the poorest county in Maryland?
No, Dorchester County's poverty rate was 14.1% in 2024, 6th 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, Dorchester County ranks 3rd of 24 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Dorchester 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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Maryland Legal Aid
Legal aid
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Civil Justice, Inc.
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 Dorchester 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 Dorchester County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.