About one in 12 people in Orange County, Virginia, lives below the poverty line
In Orange County, 8.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Orange County's score
In Orange County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 56.9. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 22.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Orange 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, Orange County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (220.4, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 56.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.9% · August 202534th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people220.4 · 202579th percentile
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- 39.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.0% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.3% · second quarter of 202643rd percentile
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- 36.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202636th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 26.4 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.2% · fiscal year 202715th percentile
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- 22.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.5% · 202411th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.2% · 202418th percentile
- People with a disability14.9% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- People without health insurance6.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$87,969 · 202412th 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 Orange 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 Orange County, 20.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Orange County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Orange County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 23.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Orange County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income tripled 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 Orange County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 8.9% in 2015 to 7.2% in 2016.
The share of households in Orange County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 7.6%
Low on the chart: 5.8% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Orange County, Virginia.
How Orange County has changed
Orange County's population had its largest rise, from 28,658 in 2004 to 33,329 in 2009.
Orange County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38,986, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 18,791. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Orange County, Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Orange County rose by about a third to 9,409, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 9,409 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Orange County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.6% | 2024 8.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,073 | 2024 $87,969 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Orange County's history
1734
Orange County created in August 1734 when Virginia House of Burgesses adopted An Act for Dividing Spotsylvania County. Wikipedia
1909
Importance as railroad hub declined in early 20th century. Wikipedia
1990
A tornado in October 1990 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 36,254, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Orange County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Orange County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Orange County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Orange County ranks 2nd of the five; Louisa County is highest, at 25.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spotsylvania County, VA | 46 | 7.0% | — |
| Louisa County, VA | 42 | 8.3% | 25.0% |
| Culpeper County, VA | 30 | 9.6% | 20.0% |
| Orange County, VA | 26 | 8.5% | 23.9% |
| Greene County, VA | 24 | 8.4% | 21.4% |
| Albemarle County, VA | 10 | 8.3% | — |
| Madison County, VA | 9 | 10.3% | 20.7% |
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 Orange County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Orange County's poverty rate was 8.5% in 2024, 98th 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, Orange County ranks 103rd of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Orange 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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Legal Services of Northern Virginia
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 Orange 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 Orange County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.