In Douglas County, Nebraska, benefit checks make up only 12 cents of every dollar of income
In Douglas County, 12.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 65% of U.S. counties.
What drives Douglas County's score
In Douglas County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 69.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 16.7. About one in seven adults aged 25 to 54 (14.9%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Douglas 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, Douglas County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 69.3 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 rent23.4% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202758th percentile
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- 50.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.6% · August 202540th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people151.8 · 202560th percentile
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- 36.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202538th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.8% · second quarter of 202628th percentile
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- 30.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.8% · 202438th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability11.1% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- People without health insurance8.3% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$80,742 · 202419th percentile
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- 16.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.9% · 2020 to 202415th 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 Douglas 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 Douglas County, 14.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Douglas County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Douglas County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 12.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Douglas County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Douglas County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.4% in 2010 to 10.2% in 2011.
The share of households in Douglas County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 9.5%
Low on the chart: 9.1% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Douglas County, Nebraska.
How Douglas County has changed
Douglas County's population rose by more than half to 601,158, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 547,811. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Douglas County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Douglas County rose by about a quarter to 341,754, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 330,124. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Douglas County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.6% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.7% | 2024 11.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,826 | 2024 $80,742 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Douglas County's history
1854
Created on November 23, 1854. Wikipedia
1975
A tornado in May 1975 did $250 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
Hail in April 2001 did $300 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
Hail in April 2001 did $200 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A thunderstorm in June 2008 did $53 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 584,526, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1967
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Douglas County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Douglas County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Douglas County, in Nebraska and Iowa, one scores higher. Of the group, Douglas County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Pottawattamie County gets the largest, at 27.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pottawattamie County, IA | 46 | 13.9% | 27.1% |
| Douglas County, NE | 34 | 11.8% | 12.1% |
| Dodge County, NE | 27 | 13.1% | 21.9% |
| Sarpy County, NE | 4 | 5.8% | 14.4% |
| Washington County, NE | 3 | 6.5% | 16.0% |
| 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 Douglas County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Douglas County's poverty rate was 11.8% in 2024, 27th 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, Douglas County ranks 9th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Douglas 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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Credit Advisors Foundation
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Credit Advisors Foundation
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Credit Advisors Foundation
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
Download the CSV for Douglas 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 Douglas County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.