About one in 21 people in Morris County, New Jersey, lives below the poverty line
In Morris County, 4.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives Morris County's score
In Morris County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 54.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 3.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Morris 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.
Morris 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.
- 54.7 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 rent22.0% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.5% · fiscal year 202736th percentile
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- 31.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.9% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
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- 17.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector9.6% · August 20252nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people92.3 · 202532nd percentile
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- 7.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.5% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score23.8% · second quarter of 20262nd percentile
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- 3.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line4.7% · 20240th percentile
- Children below the poverty line4.3% · 20240th percentile
- People with a disability9.0% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance4.7% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$137,213 · 20240th 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 Morris 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 Morris County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Morris County
New Jersey
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Morris County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 9.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about seven times as much as benefit checks
In Morris County, New Jersey, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9.4%; 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 Morris County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled to 3.7%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2011 to 2012, reaching 2.5%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Morris County, New Jersey.
How Morris County has changed
Morris County's population had its largest rise, from 439,533 in 1994 to 467,678 in 1999.
Morris County's population rose 39% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 421,936. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Morris County, New Jersey.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Morris County rose by about a quarter to 301,376, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 274,704. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Morris County, New Jersey.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.2% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 2.3% | 2024 4.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $54,934 | 2024 $137,213 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Morris County's history
1999
A flash flood in September 1999 did $30 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flood in April 2007 did $26 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in March 2010 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in August 2011 did $200 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 509,285, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
33 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Morris County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Morris County beside its neighbors
All seven counties that border Morris County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Morris County ranks 7th of the eight; Passaic County is highest, at 22.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essex County, NJ | 82 | 13.4% | 16.3% |
| Passaic County, NJ | 72 | 12.1% | 22.2% |
| Union County, NJ | 56 | 9.7% | 13.5% |
| Warren County, NJ | 35 | 8.2% | 20.1% |
| Sussex County, NJ | 28 | 5.2% | 16.8% |
| Somerset County, NJ | 18 | 5.8% | 8.7% |
| Hunterdon County, NJ | 11 | 4.5% | 11.6% |
| Morris County, NJ | 7 | 4.7% | 9.4% |
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 Morris County the poorest county in New Jersey?
No, Morris County's poverty rate was 4.7% in 2024, 20th 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, Morris County ranks 21st of 21 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Morris 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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Housing Partnership for Morris County
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Services of New Jersey
Legal aid
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New Jersey county bar lawyer referral services (NJSBA list)
Lawyer referral
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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 Morris 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 Morris County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.