About one in 12 people in Beaufort County, South Carolina, lives below the poverty line
In Beaufort County, 8.4% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Beaufort County's score
In Beaufort County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 81.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 26.4. The typical household earns $91,129 a year (2024), more than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Beaufort 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, Beaufort County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (26.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.7 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 rent22.3% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.5% · fiscal year 202789th percentile
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- 43.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202658th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.2% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
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- 35.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.8% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.3% · second quarter of 202620th percentile
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- 30.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.2% · August 202538th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people76.4 · 202523rd percentile
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- 26.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.4% · 202410th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.4% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability13.4% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- People without health insurance8.5% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$91,129 · 20249th 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 Beaufort 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 Beaufort County, 28.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Beaufort County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Beaufort County had its largest rise, from 12.8% in 2004 to 17.1% in 2009.
In Beaufort County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 19.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Beaufort County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 19.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Beaufort County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.1% in 2009 to 7.3% in 2010.
The share of households in Beaufort County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 5.2%
Low on the chart: 4.9% 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, Beaufort County, South Carolina.
How Beaufort County has changed
Beaufort County's population had its largest rise, from 136,331 in 2004 to 159,737 in 2009.
Beaufort County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 201,775, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 53,706. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Beaufort County, South Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Beaufort County doubled to 72,257, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 53,669. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Beaufort County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.1% | 2024 8.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,827 | 2024 $91,129 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Beaufort County's history
1893
Major hurricane 1893 and fire 1907 brought extensive destruction and economic turmoil to Beaufort. Wikipedia
1998
Lightning in July 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A tornado in September 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Lightning in August 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in July 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 187,117, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Beaufort County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Beaufort County beside its neighbors
All three counties that border Beaufort County score higher than it does. Of the group, Beaufort County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Hampton County gets the largest, at 36.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colleton County, SC | 92 | 21.0% | 35.4% |
| Hampton County, SC | 81 | 20.5% | 36.3% |
| Jasper County, SC | 74 | 14.5% | 30.4% |
| Beaufort County, SC | 38 | 8.4% | 19.7% |
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 Beaufort County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Beaufort County's poverty rate was 8.4% in 2024, the lowest of 46 in South Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Allendale County, at 31.6%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Beaufort County ranks 46th of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Beaufort 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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CCCS of the Savannah Area, Inc.- SC Branch
HUD-approved housing counselor
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South Carolina Legal Services
Legal aid
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Pro Bono Legal Services — SC Bar
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 Beaufort 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 Beaufort County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.