Unemployment in Dodge County, Nebraska, is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties
In Dodge County, 2.8% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 72% of U.S. counties.
What drives Dodge County's score
In Dodge County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 50.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 13.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Dodge 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.
Dodge 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.
- 50.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.7% · August 202533rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people172.1 · 202567th percentile
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- 50.4 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 rent18.5% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.5% · fiscal year 202748th percentile
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- 37.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.1% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.5% · 202430th percentile
- People with a disability13.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,530 · 202439th percentile
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- 32.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.2% · August 202545th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.5% · second quarter of 202635th percentile
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- 13.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20269th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.2% · 2020 to 202416th 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 Dodge 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 Dodge County, 19.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Dodge County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Dodge County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 21.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Dodge County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Dodge County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 8.2%
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 8.2%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Dodge County, Nebraska.
How Dodge County has changed
Dodge County's population had its largest rise, from 34,762 in 1969 to 36,189 in 1974.
Dodge County's population rose 9% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
High on the chart: 37,884 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Dodge County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Dodge County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 16,664. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Dodge County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.3% | 2024 13.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,472 | 2024 $70,530 |
The table uses 3.0% for 2025; the score uses 2.8% 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 Dodge County's history
1854
Created on November 23, 1854. Wikipedia
1976
Pathfinder Hotel explosion due to natural gas leak on January 10, 1976 killed 20 people in downtown Fremont. Wikipedia
1980
A tornado in May 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
Hail in June 1996 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 37,167, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
Biofuels plant explosion in south Fremont on July 29, 2025 killed three people. Wikipedia
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Since 1967
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Dodge County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Dodge County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Dodge County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Dodge County ranks 2nd of the eight; Burt County is highest, at 26.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Douglas County, NE | 34 | 11.8% | 12.1% |
| Dodge County, NE | 27 | 13.1% | 21.9% |
| Butler County, NE | 15 | 9.5% | 18.5% |
| Colfax County, NE | 13 | 8.4% | 16.8% |
| Burt County, NE | 9 | 10.0% | 26.9% |
| Washington County, NE | 3 | 6.5% | 16.0% |
| Cuming County, NE | 2 | 8.6% | 17.3% |
| Saunders County, NE | 1 | 6.0% | 17.2% |
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 Dodge County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Dodge County's poverty rate was 13.1% in 2024, 15th highest of 93 in Nebraska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Garden County, at 16.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Dodge County ranks 17th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Dodge 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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Legal Aid of Nebraska
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 Dodge County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.