About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Clarke County, Alabama, is not working
In Clarke County, 32.2% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 91% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clarke County's score
In Clarke County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 88.0. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 86.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clarke 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.
Clarke County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (12.5%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (7.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202682nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working32.2% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
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- 86.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.0% · August 202579th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people358.2 · 202594th percentile
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- 84.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.3% · August 202585th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score57.2% · second quarter of 202692nd percentile
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- 78.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.8% · 202479th percentile
- Children below the poverty line29.2% · 202490th percentile
- People with a disability20.5% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance7.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$49,366 · 202492nd percentile
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- 43.4 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 rent12.5% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.4% · fiscal year 202766th 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 Clarke 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 Clarke County, 21.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Clarke County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Clarke County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 35.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Clarke County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.7%; 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 Clarke County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 23.5%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2020, reaching 20.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Clarke County, Alabama.
How Clarke County has changed
Clarke County's population fell by about a fifth to 22,142, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2014 to 2019, reaching 23,362. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clarke County, Alabama.
The number of jobs located in Clarke County had its largest rise, from 8,578 in 1990 to 9,786 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Clarke County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 10,018 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clarke County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.2% | 2025 4.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.7% | 2024 17.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,030 | 2024 $49,366 |
The table uses 4.9% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Clarke County's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 30,987. The 2020 Census counted 23,087, 75% of the peak. Census Bureau
1996
A tornado in March 1996 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in April 2018 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clarke County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clarke County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Clarke County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clarke County ranks 4th of the seven; Wilcox County is highest, at 45.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilcox County, AL | 99 | 34.0% | 45.5% |
| Monroe County, AL | 95 | 21.2% | 37.4% |
| Choctaw County, AL | 93 | 21.9% | 39.2% |
| Marengo County, AL | 92 | 21.6% | 34.2% |
| Clarke County, AL | 91 | 17.8% | 35.7% |
| Washington County, AL | 66 | 17.8% | 34.9% |
| Baldwin County, AL | 43 | 10.5% | 22.3% |
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 Clarke County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Clarke County's poverty rate was 17.8% in 2024, 33rd highest of 67 in Alabama (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Bullock County, at 36.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Clarke County ranks 21st of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clarke 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 Alabama
Legal aid
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Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service
Lawyer referral
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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 Clarke 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 Clarke County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.