About one in five people in Clay County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Clay County, 22.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clay County's score
In Clay County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.1. About half of people (51.6%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 83% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 75.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clay 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.
Clay County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.8%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.4%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.9% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.6% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 75.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.9% · 202470th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.2% · 202469th percentile
- People with a disability22.0% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- People without health insurance9.8% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,417 · 202485th percentile
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- 72.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.3% · August 202582nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people154.9 · 202561st percentile
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- 67.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202664th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.3% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
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- 36.6 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 rent13.8% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.4% · fiscal year 202747th 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 Clay 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 Clay County, 21.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Clay County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Clay County had its largest rise, from 27.0% in 2004 to 33.3% in 2009.
In Clay County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 36.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Clay County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Clay County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.1% in 2011 to 15.5% in 2012.
The share of households in Clay County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 10.1%
Biggest drop: 2022 to 2023, reaching 12.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Clay County, Arkansas.
How Clay County has changed
Clay County's population had its largest drop, from 19,746 in 1984 to 18,320 in 1989.
Clay County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 21,165 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clay County, Arkansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Clay County fell by about half to 3,023, the lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 6,188 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clay County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.7% | 2024 15.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,719 | 2024 $53,417 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Clay County's history
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 28,386. The 2020 Census counted 14,552, 51% of the peak. Census Bureau
1990
A tornado in May 1990 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in January 1999 did $8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
Lightning in August 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A tornado in February 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clay County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clay County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Clay County, in Arkansas and Missouri, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clay County ranks 4th of the six; Ripley County is highest, at 44.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dunklin County, MO | 96 | 25.4% | 41.3% |
| Ripley County, MO | 96 | 21.9% | 44.8% |
| Butler County, MO | 93 | 20.3% | 38.2% |
| Greene County, AR | 85 | 14.1% | 30.3% |
| Clay County, AR | 76 | 15.9% | 36.8% |
| Randolph County, AR | 74 | 18.1% | 36.7% |
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 Clay County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Clay County's poverty rate was 15.9% in 2024, 51st highest of 75 in Arkansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lee County, at 41.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Clay County ranks 44th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clay 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 Aid of Arkansas
Legal aid
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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.
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 Clay County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.