About one in 15 people in Shelby County, Alabama, lives below the poverty line
In Shelby County, 6.8% of people lived below the poverty line (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024). That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Shelby County's score
In Shelby County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 63.5. Jobs are the lowest part, at 9.8. Unemployment averaged 2.4%, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Even so, Shelby County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (284.5, 2025).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Shelby County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 63.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.7% · August 202537th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people284.5 · 202589th percentile
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- 50.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.9% · August 202560th percentile
- People with a credit card behind5.2% · August 202545th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score22.2% · Q4 202544th percentile
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- 37.6 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.0% · fiscal year 20277th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent21.1% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
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- 13.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line8.4% · 20247th percentile
- People with a disability12.2% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$102,861 · 20244th percentile
- People below the poverty line6.8% · 20243rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
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- 9.8 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.0% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average2.4% · Sep 2025 to Aug 20263rd percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Shelby County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Shelby County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Shelby County in 2024, pay from work was 65 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 21 cents. Benefit checks were 14 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
That split has held roughly steady since 1969, when benefit checks were 9 cents of every dollar.
In Shelby County, pay from work still brings in most of the money
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Shelby County, Alabama: 14.2% and 64.7% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 14.2% of all personal income in Shelby County, Alabama (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Shelby County, 16.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Shelby County has changed
The number of people living in Shelby County more than doubled between 1969 and 2024, from 35,972 to 235,969. The number of jobs located there more than doubled from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 3.3% in 1990 to 2.2% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 35,972 | 2024 235,969 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 28,538 | 2024 85,169 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 2.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.7% | 2024 6.8% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $36,980 | 2024 $102,861 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 9.3% | 2024 14.2% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Shelby County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 223,024, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
1818
Established on February 7, 1818. Wikipedia
1964
Tornado: 10 deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
Tornado: $25 million in property damage, one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
Flash flood: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
Flash flood: two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Shelby County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Shelby County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Shelby County score higher than it does. Of the group, Shelby County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Coosa County gets the largest, at 36.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bibb County, AL | 93 | 21.6% | 31.8% |
| Talladega County, AL | 89 | 19.0% | 33.2% |
| Jefferson County, AL | 83 | 14.2% | 17.6% |
| Coosa County, AL | 77 | 19.1% | 36.0% |
| Chilton County, AL | 72 | 15.4% | 27.5% |
| St. Clair County, AL | 49 | 9.7% | 25.8% |
| Shelby County, AL | 23 | 6.8% | 14.2% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Shelby County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Shelby County's poverty rate was 6.8% in 2024, the lowest 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, Shelby County ranks 67th of 67 in the state.
Shelby County in photographs
Places in Shelby County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
This is a photograph of the Shelby County Courthouse in Columbiana, Alabama.
Photo: Rivers Langley; SaveRivers via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
The Ebenezer Swamp Ecological Preserve is located in Shelby County, Alabama.
Shelby County, Alabama: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Shelby County, Alabama?
6.8% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in 15 people. Among children it was 8.4%.
Is Shelby County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Shelby County's poverty rate was 6.8% in 2024, the lowest 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, Shelby County ranks 67th of 67 in the state.
What is the population of Shelby County, Alabama?
About 235,969 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 223,024, the most of any census.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Shelby County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Legal Services Alabama
Legal aid
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Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,313 approved agencies 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 Shelby County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Shelby County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.