About one in 10 people in Cape May County, New Jersey, lives below the poverty line
In Cape May County, 9.8% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 79% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cape May County's score
In Cape May County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 86.6. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 23.8. The typical household earns $91,758 a year (2024), more than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cape May 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, Cape May County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (8.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (27.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.6 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 rent27.7% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.3% · fiscal year 202779th percentile
-
- 63.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year8.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202698th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.3% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
-
- 31.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.5% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people111 · 202541st percentile
-
- 25.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202534th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202512th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.2% · second quarter of 202630th percentile
-
- 23.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.2% · 202428th percentile
- People with a disability15.0% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- People without health insurance5.0% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$91,758 · 20249th 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 Cape May 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 Cape May County, 29.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cape May County
New Jersey
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cape May County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 24.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Cape May County, New Jersey, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cape May County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.0% in 2013 to 7.0% in 2014.
The share of households in Cape May County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 7.5%
High on the chart: 7.7% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Cape May County, New Jersey.
How Cape May County has changed
Cape May County's population rose most sharply from its first year (58,999 in 1969) to 71,929 in 1974.
Cape May County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 102,135 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cape May County, New Jersey.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Cape May County rose by about a quarter to 43,316, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 43,316. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cape May County, New Jersey.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.7% | 2025 9.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.7% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,310 | 2024 $91,758 |
The table uses 9.2% for 2025; the score uses 8.2% 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 Cape May County's history
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 102,326. The 2020 Census counted 95,263, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
2005
A rip current in July 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in August 2011 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1965
34 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cape May County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cape May County beside its neighbors
All two counties that border Cape May County score higher than it does. Of the group, Cape May County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Cumberland County gets the largest, at 31.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland County, NJ | 92 | 14.2% | 31.2% |
| Atlantic County, NJ | 77 | 11.1% | 25.0% |
| Cape May County, NJ | 43 | 9.8% | 24.7% |
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 Cape May County the poorest county in New Jersey?
No, Cape May County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 9th highest of 21 in New Jersey (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Hudson County, at 14.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cape May County ranks 11th of 21 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cape May 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 Services of New Jersey
Legal aid
-
New Jersey county bar lawyer referral services (NJSBA list)
Lawyer referral
-
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 Cape May 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 Cape May County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.