About one in 15 people in Anoka County, Minnesota, lives below the poverty line
In Anoka County, 6.9% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Anoka County's score
In Anoka County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 66.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 7.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Anoka 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, Anoka County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.9%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (226.6, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 66.1 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 rent23.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th percentile
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- 46.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.9% · August 202510th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people226.6 · 202581st percentile
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- 38.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202665th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.7% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
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- 15.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202519th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.3% · second quarter of 20269th percentile
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- 7.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.9% · 20243rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.4% · 20247th percentile
- People with a disability10.3% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance4.6% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$100,616 · 20245th 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 Anoka 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 Anoka County, 15.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Anoka County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Anoka County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about six times its 1969 level, reaching 17.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Anoka County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income grew to about six times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 17.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Anoka County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.2% in 2012 to 7.0% in 2013.
The share of households in Anoka County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 7.2%
Low on the chart: 4.4% 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, Anoka County, Minnesota.
How Anoka County has changed
Anoka County's population had its largest rise, from 140,975 in 1969 to 174,892 in 1974.
Anoka County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 376,840, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 329,635. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Anoka County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Anoka County nearly doubled to 133,128, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 108,692. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Anoka County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.5% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 4.8% | 2024 6.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $38,707 | 2024 $100,616 |
The table uses 3.9% 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 Anoka County's history
1857
Organized by an act of the Minnesota Territorial Legislature on May 23, 1857, formed from parts of Ramsey County and Benton County. Wikipedia
1965
A tornado in May 1965 did $25 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1965
A tornado in May 1965 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
A thunderstorm in September 2005 did $85 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Hail in August 2006 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 363,887, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
12 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Anoka County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Anoka County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Anoka County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Anoka County ranks 4th of the seven; Isanti County is highest, at 23.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ramsey County, MN | 45 | 13.3% | 20.3% |
| Isanti County, MN | 36 | 7.2% | 23.2% |
| Chisago County, MN | 25 | 6.4% | 20.3% |
| Hennepin County, MN | 24 | 9.5% | 12.9% |
| Anoka County, MN | 23 | 6.9% | 17.7% |
| Sherburne County, MN | 15 | 5.9% | 17.4% |
| Washington County, MN | 10 | 4.9% | 12.9% |
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 Anoka County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Anoka County's poverty rate was 6.9% in 2024, 80th highest of 87 in Minnesota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Beltrami County, at 17.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Anoka County ranks 36th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Anoka 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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Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid
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.
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 Anoka County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.