About four in five adults aged 25 to 54 in Cayuga County, New York, have a job
In Cayuga County, 17.7% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 68% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 63% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cayuga County's score
In Cayuga County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 49.1. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 36.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.9%, August 2025, lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cayuga 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.
Cayuga 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.
- 49.1 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 rent20.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.0% · fiscal year 202732nd percentile
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- 48.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.1% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people134.3 · 202553rd percentile
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- 38.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.5% · 202452nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.5% · 202446th percentile
- People with a disability14.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,774 · 202446th percentile
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- 37.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202644th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.7% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
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- 36.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.9% · August 202512th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.4% · second quarter of 202643rd 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 Cayuga 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 Cayuga County, 21.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cayuga County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cayuga County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Cayuga County, New York, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cayuga County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.9% in 2020 to 15.4% in 2021.
The share of households in Cayuga County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.8%
High on the chart: 15.7% 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, Cayuga County, New York.
How Cayuga County has changed
Cayuga County's population had its largest rise, from 76,562 in 1969 to 79,322 in 1974.
Cayuga County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1994 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 82,933 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cayuga County, New York.
The number of jobs located in Cayuga County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 26,079 in 2015 to 23,537 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Cayuga County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 26,633 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cayuga County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.6% | 2024 13.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,625 | 2024 $67,774 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Cayuga County's history
1799
Formed in 1799 by the splitting of Onondaga County. Wikipedia
1939
Auburn Theological Seminary moved to New York City in 1939 due to financial difficulties from the Great Depression. Wikipedia
1983
A tornado in May 1983 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
The county's largest recorded population was the 1990 Census count of 82,313. The 2020 Census counted 76,248, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
1996
A flash flood in January 1996 did $1.4 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in September 1998 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in September 1998 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cayuga County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cayuga County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Cayuga County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cayuga County ranks 5th of the seven; Oswego County is highest, at 28.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oswego County, NY | 65 | 15.7% | 28.2% |
| Seneca County, NY | 50 | 13.4% | 28.1% |
| Cortland County, NY | 45 | 14.7% | 26.3% |
| Onondaga County, NY | 44 | 12.5% | 21.3% |
| Cayuga County, NY | 36 | 13.5% | 25.3% |
| Wayne County, NY | 36 | 11.7% | 25.5% |
| Tompkins County, NY | 31 | 17.3% | 18.3% |
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 Cayuga County the poorest county in New York?
No, Cayuga County's poverty rate was 13.5% in 2024, 23rd highest of 62 in New York (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Bronx County, at 28.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cayuga County ranks 43rd of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cayuga 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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Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York
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 Cayuga 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 Cayuga County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.