About one in five people in Cleburne County, Alabama, has a disability
In Cleburne County, 20.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 79% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 58% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cleburne County's score
In Cleburne County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 78.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 7.9%, August 2025, higher than in 82% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 69.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cleburne 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.
Cleburne County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (2.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (12.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.9% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.6% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
-
- 69.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.0% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people172.6 · 202567th percentile
-
- 63.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.0% · 202456th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.1% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability20.0% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,370 · 202462nd percentile
-
- 38.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20268th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.0% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
-
- 27.9 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 rent12.6% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.3% · fiscal year 202735th 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 Cleburne 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 Cleburne County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cleburne County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cleburne County had its largest rise, from 22.0% in 2004 to 27.6% in 2009.
In Cleburne County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Cleburne County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cleburne County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.8% in 2019 to 12.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Cleburne County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 14.5%
Low on the chart: 9.4% 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, Cleburne County, Alabama.
How Cleburne County has changed
Cleburne County's population rose 43% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 14,039. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cleburne County, Alabama.
The number of jobs located in Cleburne County had its largest rise in the last span, from 2,104 in 2020 to 2,830 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Cleburne County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 3,068 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cleburne County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 2.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.7% | 2024 14.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,445 | 2024 $62,370 |
The table uses 2.6% for 2025; the score uses 2.9% 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 Cleburne County's history
1866
Established December 6, 1866, from Benton (now Calhoun), Randolph, and Talladega counties. Wikipedia
2008
A tornado in May 2008 did $1.75 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 15,056, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
A flash flood in August 2025 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1974
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cleburne County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cleburne County beside its neighbors
All eight counties that border Cleburne County, in Alabama and Georgia, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cleburne County ranks 7th of the nine; Randolph County is highest, at 36.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calhoun County, AL | 90 | 18.5% | 32.6% |
| Talladega County, AL | 89 | 19.0% | 33.2% |
| Carroll County, GA | 85 | 13.3% | 22.9% |
| Polk County, GA | 85 | 15.3% | 32.1% |
| Randolph County, AL | 83 | 18.6% | 36.1% |
| Clay County, AL | 76 | 17.4% | 34.6% |
| Cherokee County, AL | 66 | 15.4% | 34.3% |
| Haralson County, GA | 63 | 13.7% | 27.6% |
| Cleburne County, AL | 58 | 14.0% | 28.5% |
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 Cleburne County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Cleburne County's poverty rate was 14.0% in 2024, 57th 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, Cleburne County ranks 56th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cleburne 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.
-
Legal Services Alabama
Legal aid
-
Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service
Lawyer referral
-
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 Cleburne 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 Cleburne County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.