About one in 14 people in Chesterfield County, Virginia, lives below the poverty line
In Chesterfield County, 7.1% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 65% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chesterfield County's score
In Chesterfield County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 63.2. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 15.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chesterfield 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, Chesterfield County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (309.5, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.0% · August 202534th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people309.5 · 202591st percentile
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- 57.9 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 rent23.3% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.5% · fiscal year 202736th percentile
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- 44.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.5% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202552nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.9% · second quarter of 202628th percentile
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- 24.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202633rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.9% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
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- 15.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.1% · 20244th percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.9% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability12.6% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$101,573 · 20245th 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 Chesterfield 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 Chesterfield County, 16.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chesterfield County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Chesterfield County had its largest rise, from 8.1% in 2004 to 11.9% in 2009.
In Chesterfield County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 17.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Chesterfield County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 17.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chesterfield County getting SNAP food aid rose most from 4.3% in 2010 to 6.3% in 2012, 1.0 points each year.
The share of households in Chesterfield County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 6.5%
Low on the chart: 4.0% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Chesterfield County, Virginia.
How Chesterfield County has changed
Chesterfield County's population had its largest rise, from 159,979 in 1984 to 201,200 in 1989.
Chesterfield County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 389,793, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 95,906. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chesterfield County, Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Chesterfield County doubled to 148,684, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 131,126. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chesterfield County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.2% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.8% | 2024 7.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $44,866 | 2024 $101,573 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Chesterfield County's history
1749
Formed in 1749 from parts of Henrico County. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in May 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A flash flood in September 1999 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A flash flood in August 2004 did $2 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A tornado in September 2018 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 364,548, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chesterfield County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chesterfield County beside its neighbors
Of the 10 counties that border Chesterfield County, nine score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chesterfield County ranks 3rd of the six; Amelia County is highest, at 27.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petersburg city, VA | 99 | 23.3% | — |
| Hopewell city, VA | 99 | 17.1% | — |
| Richmond city, VA | 85 | 18.2% | 17.0% |
| Colonial Heights city, VA | 79 | 9.6% | — |
| Dinwiddie County, VA | 73 | 10.1% | — |
| Charles City County, VA | 68 | 11.4% | 25.1% |
| Amelia County, VA | 56 | 9.6% | 27.7% |
| Henrico County, VA | 47 | 10.3% | 14.7% |
| Prince George County, VA | 42 | 11.3% | — |
| Chesterfield County, VA | 34 | 7.1% | 17.1% |
| Powhatan County, VA | 11 | 6.7% | 15.7% |
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 Chesterfield County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Chesterfield County's poverty rate was 7.1% in 2024, 113th highest of 133 in Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Radford city, at 27.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Chesterfield County ranks 94th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chesterfield 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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Central Virginia Legal Aid Society
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 Chesterfield 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 Chesterfield County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.