In Onondaga County, New York, benefit checks make up only 21 cents of every dollar of income
In Onondaga County, 21.3% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 74% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives Onondaga County's score
In Onondaga County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 80.4. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 28.7. About one in 30 people (3.3%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Onondaga 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, Onondaga County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (26.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 80.4 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 rent26.2% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.9% · fiscal year 202770th percentile
-
- 44.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.4% · August 202536th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people129.9 · 202551st percentile
-
- 41.2 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 202645th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
-
- 38.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.6% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.8% · second quarter of 202632nd percentile
-
- 28.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.5% · 202444th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.5% · 202441st percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance3.3% · 2020 to 20243rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$78,198 · 202423rd 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 Onondaga 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 Onondaga 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
Onondaga County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Onondaga County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Onondaga County, New York, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Onondaga County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.0% in 2011 to 12.2% in 2012.
The share of households in Onondaga County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.4%
High on the chart: 14.4% in 2016. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Onondaga County, New York.
How Onondaga County has changed
Onondaga County's population fell most sharply on the way to its 1999 low, from 472,692 in 1994 to 458,575 in 1999.
Onondaga County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 476,259 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Onondaga County, New York.
The number of jobs located in Onondaga County had its largest rise in the last span, from 227,350 in 2020 to 250,251 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Onondaga County was about the same in 2025 as in 1990, after reaching its lowest on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 227,350 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Onondaga County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.4% | 2024 12.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,761 | 2024 $78,198 |
The table uses 3.6% 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 Onondaga County's history
1794
In 1794, Onondaga County was split off from Herkimer County. Wikipedia
1799
In 1799, Cayuga County was split off from Onondaga. Wikipedia
1808
In 1808, Cortland County was split off from Onondaga. Wikipedia
1998
A thunderstorm in May 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in September 1998 did $90 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A thunderstorm in July 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in June 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 476,516, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1972
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Onondaga County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Onondaga County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Onondaga County, two score higher. Of the group, Onondaga County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Oswego County gets the largest, at 28.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oswego County, NY | 65 | 15.7% | 28.2% |
| Cortland County, NY | 45 | 14.7% | 26.3% |
| Onondaga County, NY | 44 | 12.5% | 21.3% |
| Madison County, NY | 39 | 10.7% | 23.4% |
| Cayuga County, NY | 36 | 13.5% | 25.3% |
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 Onondaga County the poorest county in New York?
No, Onondaga County's poverty rate was 12.5% in 2024, 38th 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, Onondaga County ranks 33rd of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Onondaga 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.
-
Home Headquarters, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Syracuse Cooperative Federal Credit Union
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York
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 Onondaga 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 Onondaga County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.