About one in 13 people in Lake County, Ohio, lives below the poverty line
In Lake County, 7.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 77% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lake County's score
In Lake County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 61.2. Jobs are the lowest part, at 13.9. About one in eight adults aged 25 to 54 (13.2%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lake 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, Lake County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (255.1, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.5% · August 202536th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people255.1 · 202585th percentile
-
- 43.2 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 rent20.4% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.1% · fiscal year 202722nd percentile
-
- 36.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202538th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.8% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.0% · second quarter of 202625th percentile
-
- 15.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.5% · 20245th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.7% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$84,484 · 202414th percentile
-
- 13.9 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 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.2% · 2020 to 20249th 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 Lake 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 Lake County, 21.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lake County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lake County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 21.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Lake County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 21.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lake County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.5% in 2011 to 7.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Lake County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 7.5%
Low on the chart: 5.0% 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, Lake County, Ohio.
How Lake County has changed
Lake County's population had its largest rise, from 203,439 in 1974 to 212,527 in 1979.
Lake County's population rose 18% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 232,377 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lake County, Ohio.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lake County rose 16% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 102,353 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lake County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.4% | 2024 7.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $34,260 | 2024 $84,484 |
The table uses 3.8% 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 Lake County's history
1840
Lake County was established on March 6, 1840, from land given by Cuyahoga and Geauga counties. Wikipedia
1900
Wealthy Cleveland residents maintained large summer estates during early 1900s. Wikipedia
1994
A thunderstorm in August 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A flash flood in July 2006 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A flash flood in July 2006 did $320 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in July 2013 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 232,603, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1969
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lake County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lake County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border Lake County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lake County ranks 2nd of the four; Ashtabula County is highest, at 33.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashtabula County, OH | 75 | 15.2% | 33.1% |
| Cuyahoga County, OH | 72 | 14.9% | 20.2% |
| Lake County, OH | 22 | 7.5% | 21.1% |
| 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 Lake County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Lake County's poverty rate was 7.5% in 2024, 81st 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, Lake County ranks 73rd of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lake 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.
-
Fair Housing Resource Center
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Legal Aid Society of Cleveland
Legal aid
-
Ohio Legal Help
Legal help website
-
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 Lake County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.