In Chester County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks make up only 10 cents of every dollar of income
In Chester County, 10.4% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chester County's score
In Chester County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 42.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 4.2. The typical household earns $130,877 a year (2024), more than in 99% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chester 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.
Chester 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.
- 42.7 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 rent21.8% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202713th percentile
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- 19.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.1% · August 20258th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87.5 · 202529th percentile
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- 15.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202615th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.8% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
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- 10.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.0% · August 202510th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202519th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score24.1% · second quarter of 20262nd percentile
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- 4.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.4% · 20242nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.2% · 20242nd percentile
- People with a disability9.6% · 2020 to 20243rd percentile
- People without health insurance4.4% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$130,877 · 20240th 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 Chester 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 Chester County, 17.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chester County
Pennsylvania
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Chester County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 10.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about six times as much as benefit checks
In Chester County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 10.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chester County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 3.0% in 2011 to 3.6% in 2012; 4.9% in 2022 to 5.5% in 2023.
The share of households in Chester County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled to 5.6%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2011 to 2012, reaching 3.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Chester County, Pennsylvania.
How Chester County has changed
Chester County's population had its largest rise, from 334,239 in 1984 to 372,077 in 1989.
Chester County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 560,745, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 532,243. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chester County, Pennsylvania.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Chester County rose by more than half to 253,659, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 216,722. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chester County, Pennsylvania.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.2% | 2024 6.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $41,056 | 2024 $130,877 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.0% 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 Chester County's history
1682
One of three original Pennsylvania counties created by William Penn, August 24, 1682. Wikipedia
1979
A tornado in September 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A flash flood in September 1999 did $3 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A thunderstorm in July 2006 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 534,413, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A flash flood in September 2021 did $40 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chester County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chester County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Chester County, in Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland, score higher than it does. Of the group, Chester County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Cecil County gets the largest, at 23.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Castle County, DE | 58 | 10.3% | 19.5% |
| Cecil County, MD | 55 | 9.1% | 23.1% |
| Berks County, PA | 54 | 12.8% | 21.9% |
| Delaware County, PA | 49 | 10.7% | 16.9% |
| Lancaster County, PA | 19 | 7.7% | 18.5% |
| Montgomery County, PA | 9 | 6.2% | 12.5% |
| Chester County, PA | 3 | 6.4% | 10.4% |
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 Chester County the poorest county in Pennsylvania?
No, Chester County's poverty rate was 6.4% in 2024, 65th 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, Chester County ranks 67th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chester 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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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.
Download the CSV for Chester 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 Chester County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.