About one in 11 people in Ontario County, New York, lives below the poverty line
In Ontario County, 9.0% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 85% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ontario County's score
In Ontario County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 49.5. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 17.6. 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 Ontario 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.
Ontario 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.
- 49.5 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 rent18.6% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.3% · fiscal year 202746th percentile
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- 33.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202636th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.4% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
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- 24.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202525th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.6% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.3% · second quarter of 202620th percentile
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- 21.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.7% · August 202525th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people64 · 202516th percentile
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- 17.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.0% · 202415th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.5% · 202415th percentile
- People with a disability14.8% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- People without health insurance3.3% · 2020 to 20243rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,661 · 202415th 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 Ontario 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 Ontario County, 22.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ontario County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ontario County rose most from 13.7% in 1999 to 19.7% in 2009, 3.0 points each step.
In Ontario County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Ontario County, New York, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ontario County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.2% in 2012 to 9.2% in 2013.
The share of households in Ontario County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 6.5% 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, Ontario County, New York.
How Ontario County has changed
Ontario County's population had its largest rise, from 78,280 in 1969 to 84,870 in 1974.
Ontario County's population rose 44% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 113,012. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ontario County, New York.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Ontario County rose 42% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 46,686. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ontario County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.1% | 2024 9.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $32,026 | 2024 $83,661 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Ontario County's history
2003
A flash flood in August 2003 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A flash flood in May 2004 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flash flood in April 2011 did $1.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A thunderstorm in June 2014 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 112,458, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ontario County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ontario County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Ontario County score higher than it does. Of the group, Ontario County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Seneca County gets the largest, at 28.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seneca County, NY | 50 | 13.4% | 28.1% |
| Monroe County, NY | 43 | 14.1% | 22.6% |
| Steuben County, NY | 42 | 14.5% | 26.6% |
| Wayne County, NY | 36 | 11.7% | 25.5% |
| Yates County, NY | 35 | 12.6% | 27.3% |
| Livingston County, NY | 28 | 9.9% | 25.4% |
| Ontario County, NY | 15 | 9.0% | 21.5% |
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 Ontario County the poorest county in New York?
No, Ontario County's poverty rate was 9.0% in 2024, 56th 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, Ontario County ranks 60th of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ontario 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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Pathstone Corporation- Canandaigua, NY
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Assistance of Western New York (LawNY)
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 Ontario 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 Ontario County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.