About four in five adults aged 25 to 54 in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, have a job
In Northumberland County, 18.6% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 63% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Northumberland County's score
In Northumberland County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 54.2. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 41.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 82.1 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 73% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Northumberland 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.
Northumberland 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.
- 54.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.2% · 202458th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.2% · 202469th percentile
- People with a disability16.9% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- People without health insurance5.1% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,984 · 202464th percentile
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- 53.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.1% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.0% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.9% · second quarter of 202652nd percentile
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- 49.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 46.0 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 rent18.8% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202738th percentile
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- 41.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.5% · August 202555th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people82.1 · 202526th 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 Northumberland 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 Northumberland County, 22.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Northumberland County
Pennsylvania
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Northumberland County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 31.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Northumberland County getting SNAP food aid doubled to 15.6%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2009 to 2010, reaching 9.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.
How Northumberland County has changed
Northumberland County's population had its largest drop, from 99,776 in 1984 to 96,882 in 1989.
Northumberland County's population fell 10% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 101,940 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.
The number of jobs located in Northumberland County had its largest drop, from 30,582 in 2005 to 28,490 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Northumberland County fell 17% from 1990 to 2020, then turned up in 2025
High on the chart: 31,053 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.2% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.6% | 2024 14.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,745 | 2024 $61,984 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Northumberland County's history
1772
Formed in 1772 from parts of Lancaster, Berks, Bedford, Cumberland, and Northampton Counties. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 128,504. The 2020 Census counted 91,647, 71% of the peak. Census Bureau
1950
Anthracite coal mines began closing in 1950s, factories moved out, leading to economic depression. Wikipedia
1985
A tornado in May 1985 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Northumberland County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Northumberland County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Northumberland County, three score higher. Of the group, Northumberland County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (31.6%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dauphin County, PA | 57 | 13.0% | 22.4% |
| Lycoming County, PA | 52 | 15.1% | 27.6% |
| Schuylkill County, PA | 51 | 12.5% | 29.3% |
| Northumberland County, PA | 48 | 14.2% | 31.6% |
| Columbia County, PA | 43 | 13.5% | 26.9% |
| Juniata County, PA | 22 | 9.7% | 22.6% |
| Snyder County, PA | 21 | 12.0% | 29.1% |
| Montour County, PA | 14 | 9.8% | 22.4% |
| Union County, PA | 11 | 10.8% | 21.3% |
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 Northumberland County the poorest county in Pennsylvania?
No, Northumberland County's poverty rate was 14.2% in 2024, 16th 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, Northumberland County ranks 25th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Northumberland 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 Northumberland 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 Northumberland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.