Etowah County, Alabama

County Distress Index: Elevated · 63.5 | 103,241 people · 18th most distressed in Alabama
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Etowah County, AL registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 63.5 — 595th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Debt & Delinquency, where residents carry heavy debt burdens with elevated delinquency and collections rates. Within Alabama, it ranks 18th of 67 counties. Among its 6 neighboring counties, 5 show less distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Etowah County's primary driver is Debt & Delinquency at 81.2 — worse than roughly 81% of U.S. counties.

Debt & Delinquency Primary driver 81.2
Debt in Collections 82
Medical Debt 83
Student Loan Delinquency 68
Auto Loan Delinquency 88
Credit Card Delinquency 79
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 88
Community Vulnerability 72.5
Uninsured Rate 78
Disability Rate 67
Income & Poverty 71.8
Poverty Rate 84
Income vs. State Median 50
Child Poverty Rate 81
Housing Cost Burden 57.5
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 74
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 81
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 28
Homeownership Rate 53
Rent-to-Income Ratio 51
Employment & Wages 34.3
Unemployment Rate 6
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 40
Business Formation Rate 57

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Etowah County compares to its 6 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Etowah County
Etowah County, AL 63.5 Elevated —
Calhoun County, AL 65.8 Serious +2.3
DeKalb County, AL 56.1 Elevated -7.4
Blount County, AL 55.0 Elevated -8.4
Cherokee County, AL 50.5 Elevated -12.9
Marshall County, AL 48.8 Normal -14.7
St. Clair County, AL 41.1 Normal -22.4

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Etowah County
Doña Ana County, NM 63.4 Elevated -0.0
Cabell County, WV 63.5 Elevated +0.0
Florence County, SC 63.4 Elevated -0.1
Otero County, NM 63.4 Elevated -0.1
Clark County, OH 63.4 Elevated -0.1

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Etowah County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Etowah County

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Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service 1-800-392-5660

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Legal aid organizations serving Etowah County residents at no cost.

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Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service 1-800-392-5660

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Etowah County, Alabama?

    Etowah County has a County Distress Index score of 63.5 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 595th nationally out of 3,144 counties and 18th in Alabama out of 67 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Etowah County?

    The primary driver of distress in Etowah County is Debt & Delinquency, where the county scores 81.2 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Debt in Collections, Medical Debt, Student Loan Delinquency.

  • How does Etowah County compare to neighboring counties?

    Etowah County (63.5) can be compared to its 6 neighboring counties: Calhoun County, AL (65.8); DeKalb County, AL (56.1); Blount County, AL (55.0).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Etowah County?

    Etowah County, Alabama has a population of approximately 103,241 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a mid county.