About one in seven people with a credit file in Ocean County, New Jersey, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Ocean County, 14.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector (Urban Institute, Debt in America, August 2025). That is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ocean County's score
In Ocean County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 96.3. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 14.8. The typical household earns $94,954 a year (2024), more than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Even so, Ocean County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (30.6%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (28.9%, fiscal year 2027).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Ocean County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 96.4 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorHUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.9% · fiscal year 202794th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent30.6% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
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- 60.9 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.3% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average4.7% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202674th percentile
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- 36.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.1% · August 202515th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people144.3 · 202557th percentile
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- 26.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202534th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score17.2% · Q4 202522nd percentile
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- 14.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line12.2% · 202423rd percentile
- People with a disability12.3% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$94,954 · 20247th percentile
- People below the poverty line9.1% · 202415th percentile
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Ocean County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ocean County
New Jersey
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Ocean County in 2024, pay from work was 57 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 19 cents. Benefit checks were 24 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 11 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Ocean County, benefit checks rose from 11 to 24 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Ocean County, New Jersey: 24.4% and 57.0% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 24.4% of all personal income in Ocean County, New Jersey (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Ocean County, 22.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Ocean County has changed
The number of people living in Ocean County more than doubled between 1969 and 2024, from 199,210 to 666,434. The number of jobs located there grew by about 74% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment rose from 5.1% in 1990 to 5.3% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 199,210 | 2024 666,434 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 108,880 | 2024 189,912 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.1% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.4% | 2024 9.1% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $29,162 | 2024 $94,954 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 11.0% | 2024 24.4% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Ocean County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 637,229, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
1998
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
Rip current: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
30 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ocean County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Ocean County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border Ocean County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ocean County ranks 2nd of the four; Atlantic County is highest, at 25.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic County, NJ | 78 | 11.1% | 25.0% |
| Ocean County, NJ | 44 | 9.1% | 24.4% |
| Burlington County, NJ | 36 | 5.5% | 17.0% |
| Monmouth County, NJ | 24 | 6.9% | 13.3% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Ocean County the poorest county in New Jersey?
No, Ocean County's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 11th 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, Ocean County ranks 10th of 21 in the state.
Ocean County in photographs
Places in Ocean County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
An ad to Yellow Book.
A hen Harlequin Duck Histrionicus histrionicus rests on a rock at the Barnegat Inlet, in Ocean County, NJ.
Photo: Charles Homler d/b/a FocusOnWildlife via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
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Ocean County, New Jersey: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Ocean County, New Jersey?
9.1% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in 11 people. Among children it was 12.2%.
Is Ocean County the poorest county in New Jersey?
No, Ocean County's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 11th 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, Ocean County ranks 10th of 21 in the state.
What is the population of Ocean County, New Jersey?
About 666,434 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 637,229, the most of any census.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ocean County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Ocean, Inc. (ocean Community Economic Action Now, Inc.)
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Services of New Jersey
Legal aid
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New Jersey State Bar Foundation — Lawyer Referral Service
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,313 approved agencies 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 Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Ocean County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.