About one in 11 people in Wake County, North Carolina, has a disability
In Wake County, 9.1% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 82% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wake County's score
In Wake County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 49.6. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 15.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wake 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.
Wake 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.
- 49.7 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 rent21.2% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202731st percentile
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- 36.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.1% · second quarter of 202616th percentile
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- 31.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.6% · August 202532nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people86.4 · 202528th percentile
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- 19.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202617th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
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- 15.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.6% · 202412th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.1% · 202413th percentile
- People with a disability9.1% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance7.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$107,083 · 20243rd 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 Wake 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 Wake County, 12.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wake County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Wake County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 11.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about six times as much as benefit checks
In Wake County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 11.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wake County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.6% in 2011 to 6.5% in 2012.
The share of households in Wake County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 6.2%
Low on the chart: 4.7% 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, Wake County, North Carolina.
How Wake County has changed
Wake County's population had its largest rise, from 716,336 in 2004 to 883,624 in 2009.
Wake County's population grew to about six times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 1,232,444, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 293,545. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wake County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Wake County had its largest rise in the last span, from 550,820 in 2020 to 665,775 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Wake County more than doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 665,775, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 405,689. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wake County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.0% | 2024 8.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $34,180 | 2024 $107,083 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Wake County's history
1771
Formed in 1771 from parts of Cumberland County, Johnston County, and Orange County. Wikipedia
1988
A tornado in November 1988 did $250 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $115 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in October 2016 did $65.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Hail in May 2019 did $95 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 1,129,410, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1968
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wake County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wake County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Wake County, five score higher. Of the group, Wake County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Harnett County gets the largest, at 25.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Granville County, NC | 67 | 13.5% | 23.8% |
| Franklin County, NC | 67 | 12.6% | 23.3% |
| Harnett County, NC | 54 | 13.2% | 25.7% |
| Johnston County, NC | 45 | 9.6% | 19.9% |
| Durham County, NC | 42 | 11.3% | 15.9% |
| Wake County, NC | 17 | 8.6% | 11.2% |
| Chatham County, NC | 11 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
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 Wake County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Wake County's poverty rate was 8.6% in 2024, 95th highest of 100 in North Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Robeson County, at 23.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Wake County ranks 95th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wake 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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Carolina Community Impact Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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CCCS, a Division of Triangle Family Services, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Consumer Education Services, Inc
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid of North Carolina
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.
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 Wake County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.