About one in 17 people in Nassau County, New York, lives below the poverty line
In Nassau County, 5.9% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Nassau County's score
In Nassau County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 80.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 3.0. The typical household earns $141,824 a year (2024), more than in 99% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Nassau 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, Nassau County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (26.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 80.1 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 rent26.6% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.8% · fiscal year 202769th percentile
-
- 32.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.4% · August 20259th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people140.3 · 202556th percentile
-
- 29.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.2% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
-
- 15.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202524th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.9% · second quarter of 20268th percentile
-
- 3.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line5.9% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.8% · 20243rd percentile
- People with a disability9.4% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance3.8% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$141,824 · 20240th 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 Nassau 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 Nassau County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Nassau County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Nassau County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 13.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Nassau County, New York, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 13.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Nassau County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 3.7% in 2011 to 4.3% in 2012.
The share of households in Nassau County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 5.0%
High on the chart: 5.1% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Nassau County, New York.
How Nassau County has changed
Nassau County's population had its largest drop, from 1,424,424 in 1969 to 1,354,616 in 1974.
Nassau County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 1,424,424 in 1969. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Nassau County, New York.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Nassau County rose 8% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 636,274 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Nassau County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.5% | 2024 5.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $48,820 | 2024 $141,824 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Nassau County's history
1970
The county's largest recorded population was the 1970 Census count of 1,428,080. The 2020 Census counted 1,395,774, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2001
High surf in October 2001 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A rip current in September 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A rip current in October 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
A flash flood in October 2005 did $11 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1965
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Nassau County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Nassau County beside its neighbors
All two counties that border Nassau County score higher than it does. Of the group, Nassau County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Queens County gets the largest, at 26.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Queens County, NY | 58 | 13.4% | 26.7% |
| Suffolk County, NY | 35 | 6.7% | 15.9% |
| Nassau County, NY | 20 | 5.9% | 13.1% |
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 Nassau County the poorest county in New York?
No, Nassau County's poverty rate was 5.9% in 2024, the lowest 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, Nassau County ranks 58th of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Nassau 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.
-
Community Development Corporation of Long Island
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Hispanic Brotherhood of Rockville Centre, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Legal Services of Long Island
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 Nassau 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 Nassau County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.