About one in four people in Marion County, Alabama, has a disability
In Marion County, 26.8% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Marion County's score
In Marion County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 85.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 359 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 94% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 84.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Marion 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.
Marion County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.6%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 85.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.0% · August 202576th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people359 · 202594th percentile
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- 84.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.5% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.6% · second quarter of 202685th percentile
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- 82.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.3% · 202472nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.7% · 202486th percentile
- People with a disability26.8% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
- People without health insurance10.7% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,965 · 202486th percentile
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- 56.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202622nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.9% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
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- 34.7 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 rent11.6% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd 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 Marion 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 Marion County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Marion County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Marion County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 26.4% in 2004 to 33.1% in 2009.
In Marion County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Marion County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Marion County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.5% in 2010 to 19.4% in 2011.
The share of households in Marion County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 13.2% 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, Marion County, Alabama.
How Marion County has changed
Marion County's population rose by about a fifth from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29,323, with most of the change between 1969 and 1974
High on the chart: 31,264 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Marion County, Alabama.
The number of jobs located in Marion County fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 11,799 in 2005 to 9,142 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Marion County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 12,677 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Marion County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 14.2% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.4% | 2024 16.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,098 | 2024 $52,965 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Marion County's history
1818
Created by the Alabama Territorial General Assembly on February 13, 1818, from land acquired from the Chickasaw Indians by the Treaty of 1816. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 killed 23 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 31,214. The 2020 Census counted 29,341, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
2002
Lightning in June 2002 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $160 million in property damage and killed 18 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $11.2 million in property damage and killed seven people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Marion County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Marion County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Marion County, in Alabama and Mississippi, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Marion County ranks 5th of the eight; Lamar County is highest, at 38.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe County, MS | 93 | 18.2% | 33.5% |
| Marion County, AL | 81 | 16.3% | 32.3% |
| Fayette County, AL | 79 | 17.5% | 36.4% |
| Lamar County, AL | 76 | 18.1% | 38.4% |
| Walker County, AL | 75 | 18.1% | 29.9% |
| Winston County, AL | 68 | 16.1% | 33.1% |
| Franklin County, AL | 65 | 17.9% | 30.1% |
| Itawamba County, MS | 60 | 18.7% | 31.4% |
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 Marion County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Marion County's poverty rate was 16.3% in 2024, 46th 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, Marion County ranks 33rd of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Marion 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 Marion 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 Marion County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.