About one in 13 people in Adams County, Pennsylvania, lives below the poverty line
In Adams County, 7.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Adams County's score
In Adams County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 40.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 19.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Adams 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.
Adams 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.
- 40.7 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 rent18.2% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202731st percentile
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- 36.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.3% · August 202523rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people123.7 · 202548th percentile
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- 24.1 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 202626th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.0% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
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- 23.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.3% · August 202529th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.5% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.6% · second quarter of 202618th percentile
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- 19.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.7% · 20246th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.7% · 202416th percentile
- People with a disability13.8% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- People without health insurance6.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$85,854 · 202413th 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 Adams 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 Adams County, 21.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Adams County
Pennsylvania
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Adams County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 23.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Adams County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid rose most in four steps: 4.4% in 2010 to 5.2% in 2011; 5.9% in 2012 to 6.7% in 2013; 6.7% in 2013 to 7.5% in 2014; 7.1% in 2022 to 7.9% in 2023.
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid doubled to 8.2%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2022 to 2023, reaching 7.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Adams County, Pennsylvania.
How Adams County has changed
Adams County's population had its largest rise, from 76,609 in 1989 to 84,186 in 1994.
Adams County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 107,914, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 101,806. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Adams County, Pennsylvania.
The number of jobs located in Adams County had its largest rise, from 30,399 in 2000 to 33,454 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Adams County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 33,249
High on the chart: 34,145 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Adams County, Pennsylvania.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.8% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.8% | 2024 7.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,503 | 2024 $85,854 |
The table uses 3.7% 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 Adams County's history
1951
Furniture manufacturing industry declined from 1951 when three main companies moved, closed or were sold. Wikipedia
1987
A thunderstorm in June 1987 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A flash flood in June 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in July 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 103,852, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A thunderstorm in June 2021 did $8,000,000 in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Adams County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Adams County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Adams County, in Pennsylvania and Maryland, four score higher. Of the group, Adams County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (23.2%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin County, PA | 32 | 9.3% | 22.7% |
| York County, PA | 29 | 9.2% | 21.5% |
| Frederick County, MD | 19 | 5.3% | 13.0% |
| Cumberland County, PA | 16 | 8.1% | 18.0% |
| Adams County, PA | 15 | 7.7% | 23.2% |
| Carroll County, MD | 9 | 5.8% | 15.3% |
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 Adams County the poorest county in Pennsylvania?
No, Adams County's poverty rate was 7.7% in 2024, 63rd highest of 67 in Pennsylvania (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Forest County, at 22.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Adams County ranks 61st of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Adams 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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MidPenn Legal Services
Legal aid
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Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network (PLAN)
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 Adams County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.