About one in 12 people in Perry County, Pennsylvania, lives below the poverty line
In Perry County, 8.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Perry County's score
In Perry County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 51.8. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 30.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Perry 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, Perry County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.9%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 51.8 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 rent12.5% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.9% · fiscal year 202783rd percentile
-
- 38.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.8% · August 202541st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people99.8 · 202536th percentile
-
- 38.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202635th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.2% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
-
- 31.1 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 behind3.7% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.5% · second quarter of 202627th percentile
-
- 30.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.6% · 202412th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.3% · 202419th percentile
- People with a disability13.6% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- People without health insurance10.3% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,074 · 202425th 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 Perry 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 Perry County, 20.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Perry County
Pennsylvania
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Perry County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 23.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Perry County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid made its largest gain on the way to its 2023 high, from 9.8% in 2022 to 10.8% in 2023.
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 10.6%
High on the chart: 10.8% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Perry County, Pennsylvania.
How Perry County has changed
Perry County's population nearly doubled to 46,816, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 35,645. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Perry County, Pennsylvania.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Perry County rose by about a third to 8,152, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 7,948. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Perry County, Pennsylvania.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.5% | 2024 8.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,652 | 2024 $77,074 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Perry County's history
1755
Settlers chased out by Native Americans in June 1755, safe to return in 1762. Wikipedia
1820
Created March 22, 1820. Wikipedia
1996
A flash flood in September 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 45,969. The 2020 Census counted 45,842, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Perry County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Perry County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Perry County, two score higher. Of the group, Perry County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (23.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dauphin County, PA | 57 | 13.0% | 22.4% |
| Franklin County, PA | 32 | 9.3% | 22.7% |
| Perry County, PA | 29 | 8.6% | 23.9% |
| Juniata County, PA | 22 | 9.7% | 22.6% |
| Cumberland County, PA | 16 | 8.1% | 18.0% |
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 Perry County the poorest county in Pennsylvania?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 8.6% in 2024, 60th 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, Perry County ranks 51st of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Perry 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.
-
MidPenn Legal Services
Legal aid
-
Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network (PLAN)
Legal aid
-
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 Perry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.