About one in 10 people in Livingston County, New York, lives below the poverty line
In Livingston County, 9.9% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 78% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Livingston County's score
In Livingston County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 75.2. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 21.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 57.2 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Livingston 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, Livingston County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (25.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.2 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 rent25.5% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.9% · fiscal year 202762nd percentile
-
- 44.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202655th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.0% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
-
- 24.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.7% · August 202510th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.5% · second quarter of 202620th percentile
-
- 22.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.9% · 202421st percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.5% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability14.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- People without health insurance3.9% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,486 · 202424th percentile
-
- 21.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.6% · August 202528th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people57.2 · 202513th 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 Livingston 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 Livingston County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Livingston County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Livingston County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 25.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Livingston County, New York, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Livingston County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 12.2% in 2019 to 10.7% in 2020.
The share of households in Livingston 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: 7.0% 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, Livingston County, New York.
How Livingston County has changed
Livingston County's population had its largest rise, from 53,331 in 1969 to 56,615 in 1974.
Livingston County's population rose 15% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 65,484 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Livingston County, New York.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Livingston County rose 6% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 20,379 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Livingston County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.8% | 2024 9.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,744 | 2024 $77,486 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Livingston County's history
1994
Retsof salt mine collapsed and flooded 1994. Wikipedia
2003
A flash flood in August 2003 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 65,393. The 2020 Census counted 61,834, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Livingston County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Livingston County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Livingston County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Livingston County ranks 3rd of the seven; Allegany County is highest, at 31.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allegany County, NY | 53 | 16.4% | 31.9% |
| Monroe County, NY | 43 | 14.1% | 22.6% |
| Steuben County, NY | 42 | 14.5% | 26.6% |
| Livingston County, NY | 28 | 9.9% | 25.4% |
| Genesee County, NY | 19 | 9.9% | 25.4% |
| Ontario County, NY | 15 | 9.0% | 21.5% |
| Wyoming County, NY | 11 | 11.4% | 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 Livingston County the poorest county in New York?
No, Livingston County's poverty rate was 9.9% in 2024, 54th 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, Livingston County ranks 54th of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Livingston 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 Assistance of Western New York (LawNY)
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 Livingston 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 Livingston County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.