About one in 15 people in Olmsted County, Minnesota, lives below the poverty line
In Olmsted County, 6.8% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives Olmsted County's score
In Olmsted County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 43.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 5.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Olmsted 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.
Olmsted 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.
- 43.0 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 rent20.2% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.1% · fiscal year 202723rd percentile
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- 31.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.6% · August 20257th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people138.4 · 202555th percentile
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- 20.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202632nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.8% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
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- 11.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.7% · August 20258th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.3% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.0% · second quarter of 20264th percentile
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- 5.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.8% · 20243rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line7.4% · 20244th percentile
- People with a disability10.5% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance3.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$94,129 · 20247th 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 Olmsted 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 Olmsted County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Olmsted County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Olmsted County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 16.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Olmsted County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Olmsted County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.2% in 2013 to 7.4% in 2014.
The share of households in Olmsted County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen to 6.8%
Low on the chart: 3.3% 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, Olmsted County, Minnesota.
How Olmsted County has changed
Olmsted County's population had its largest rise, from 122,585 in 1999 to 133,195 in 2004.
Olmsted County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 166,424, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 91,659. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Olmsted County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Olmsted County nearly doubled to 105,239, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 82,499. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Olmsted County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.8% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.7% | 2024 6.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $36,606 | 2024 $94,129 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Olmsted County's history
1883
Rochester Tornado 1883 demolished much of city. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in May 1953 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in August 2007 did $35 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 162,847, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A thunderstorm in December 2021 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Olmsted County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Olmsted County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Olmsted County, four score higher. Of the group, Olmsted County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Mower County gets the largest, at 26.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mower County, MN | 37 | 9.2% | 26.1% |
| Dodge County, MN | 16 | 7.4% | 18.8% |
| Goodhue County, MN | 12 | 7.2% | 21.0% |
| Winona County, MN | 11 | 13.3% | 22.1% |
| Olmsted County, MN | 7 | 6.8% | 16.1% |
| Fillmore County, MN | 6 | 8.1% | 25.6% |
| Wabasha County, MN | 3 | 7.0% | 25.3% |
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 Olmsted County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Olmsted County's poverty rate was 6.8% in 2024, 81st 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, Olmsted County ranks 79th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Olmsted 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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Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
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 Olmsted 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 Olmsted County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.