About one in four people in Cleveland County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Cleveland County, 24.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cleveland County's score
In Cleveland County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 90.1. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cleveland 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.
Cleveland County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (4.0%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (17.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.4% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.7% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.9% · second quarter of 202684th percentile
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- 76.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.4% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people244 · 202584th percentile
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- 74.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202670th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.0% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 57.1 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 line19.4% · 202462nd percentile
- People with a disability24.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance4.0% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,279 · 202463rd percentile
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- 22.5 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 rent14.1% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.5% · fiscal year 202717th 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 Cleveland 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 Cleveland County, 21.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cleveland County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cleveland County had its largest rise, from 19.9% in 2004 to 29.0% in 2009.
In Cleveland County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 30.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Cleveland County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cleveland County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 18.8% in 2013 to 16.5% in 2014.
The share of households in Cleveland County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2011 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 12.0% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Cleveland County, Arkansas.
How Cleveland County has changed
Cleveland County's population had its largest drop, from 8,229 in 2014 to 7,555 in 2019.
Cleveland County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2004 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 8,744 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cleveland County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Cleveland County rose most sharply from its first year (973 in 1990) to 1,142 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Cleveland County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 1,142 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cleveland County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.7% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 14.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,244 | 2024 $62,279 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Cleveland County's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 13,481. The 2020 Census counted 7,550, 56% of the peak. Census Bureau
2008
A tornado in March 2008 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cleveland County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cleveland County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Cleveland County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cleveland County ranks 7th of the eight; Dallas County is highest, at 42.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County, AR | 95 | 22.3% | 36.8% |
| Bradley County, AR | 92 | 20.6% | 36.4% |
| Drew County, AR | 91 | 17.8% | 31.4% |
| Dallas County, AR | 89 | 19.3% | 42.7% |
| Lincoln County, AR | 86 | 25.8% | 32.8% |
| Cleveland County, AR | 73 | 14.0% | 30.0% |
| Calhoun County, AR | 61 | 14.6% | 30.5% |
| Grant County, AR | 54 | 13.5% | 25.2% |
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 Cleveland County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Cleveland County's poverty rate was 14.0% in 2024, 63rd 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, Cleveland County ranks 49th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cleveland 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.
Download the CSV for Cleveland 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 Cleveland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.