In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Cuyahoga County, 23.1% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 72% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 72% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cuyahoga County's score
In Cuyahoga County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 81.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 362.5 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 94% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 76.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cuyahoga 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.
Cuyahoga County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (5.7%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.1% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people362.5 · 202594th percentile
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- 76.2 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent23.5% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.1% · fiscal year 202772nd percentile
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- 70.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.5% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.1% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.2% · second quarter of 202661st percentile
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- 52.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.9% · 202464th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.7% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability15.6% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,081 · 202452nd percentile
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- 38.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202628th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.5% · 2020 to 202448th 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 Cuyahoga 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 Cuyahoga County, 19.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cuyahoga County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cuyahoga County rose most in two steps: 6.9% in 1969 to 10.4% in 1974; 17.5% in 2004 to 21.0% in 2009.
In Cuyahoga County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 20.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cuyahoga County getting SNAP food aid rose most from 13.1% in 2010 to 15.9% in 2012, 1.4 points each year.
The share of households in Cuyahoga County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 16.3%
Low on the chart: 12.4% 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, Cuyahoga County, Ohio.
How Cuyahoga County has changed
Cuyahoga County's population fell by about a quarter to 1,240,594, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 1,514,191. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cuyahoga County, Ohio.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Cuyahoga County fell 11% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 817,700 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cuyahoga County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.1% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.5% | 2024 14.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,262 | 2024 $66,081 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Cuyahoga County's history
1807
Created June 7, 1807, organized May 1, 1810. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in June 1953 killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1962
A tornado in August 1962 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1965
A tornado in April 1965 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1970
The county's largest recorded population was the 1970 Census count of 1,721,300. The 2020 Census counted 1,264,817, 73% of the peak. Census Bureau
1983
A tornado in May 1983 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cuyahoga County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cuyahoga County beside its neighbors
Cuyahoga County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cuyahoga County ranks 4th of the six; Lorain County is highest, at 22.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuyahoga County, OH | 72 | 14.9% | 20.2% |
| Summit County, OH | 58 | 13.3% | 20.3% |
| Lorain County, OH | 45 | 10.8% | 22.2% |
| Lake County, OH | 22 | 7.5% | 21.1% |
| Medina County, OH | 6 | 6.1% | 16.8% |
| Geauga County, OH | 2 | 5.7% | 13.6% |
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 Cuyahoga County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Cuyahoga County's poverty rate was 14.9% in 2024, 16th highest of 88 in Ohio (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Athens County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cuyahoga County ranks 15th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cuyahoga 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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Benjamin Rose
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Breaking Chains Inc
HUD-approved housing counselor
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CHN Housing Partners
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
Legal aid
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Ohio Legal Help
Legal help website
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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 Cuyahoga 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 Cuyahoga County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.