About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Saunders County, Nebraska, have a job
In Saunders County, 8.7% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Saunders County's score
In Saunders County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 39.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 2.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Saunders 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.
Saunders 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.
- 39.3 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 rent22.4% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.2% · fiscal year 20273rd percentile
-
- 20.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.5% · August 20254th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people102.3 · 202537th percentile
-
- 6.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.0% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.8% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability10.5% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance4.2% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$90,988 · 202410th percentile
-
- 5.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.1% · August 20254th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.3% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.1% · second quarter of 20264th percentile
-
- 2.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20263rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working8.7% · 2020 to 20241st percentile
-
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 Saunders 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 Saunders County, 18.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Saunders County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Saunders County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 17.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Saunders County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Saunders County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 4.6% in 2013 to 5.4% in 2014; 5.9% in 2018 to 5.1% in 2019.
The share of households in Saunders County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 3.4% 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, Saunders County, Nebraska.
How Saunders County has changed
Saunders County's population rose 40% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 23,406. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Saunders County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Saunders County had its largest rise in the last span, from 5,376 in 2020 to 6,040 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Saunders County nearly doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 6,040, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 5,376. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Saunders County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.2% | 2025 2.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.9% | 2024 6.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,656 | 2024 $90,988 |
The table uses 2.5% for 2025; the score uses 2.4% 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 Saunders County's history
1856
January 26, 1856 (created) October 8, 1867 (organized). Wikipedia
1867
Created January 26, 1856 by act of Nebraska Territorial Legislature; organized October 8, 1867; boundaries redefined in 1858. Wikipedia
1973
A tornado in July 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in May 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1988
A tornado in May 1988 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $52.3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 22,278, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1967
30 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Saunders County, 20 of them for flooding. FEMA
Saunders County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Saunders County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Saunders County ranks 4th of the seven; Dodge County is highest, at 21.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Douglas County, NE | 34 | 11.8% | 12.1% |
| Dodge County, NE | 27 | 13.1% | 21.9% |
| Lancaster County, NE | 17 | 11.8% | 15.6% |
| Butler County, NE | 15 | 9.5% | 18.5% |
| Sarpy County, NE | 4 | 5.8% | 14.4% |
| Cass County, NE | 4 | 6.2% | 18.8% |
| 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 Saunders County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Saunders County's poverty rate was 6.0% in 2024, 92nd 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, Saunders County ranks 87th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Saunders 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.
-
Legal Aid of Nebraska
Legal aid
-
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 Saunders 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 Saunders County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.