About one in three people with a credit file in Craighead County, Arkansas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Craighead County, 36.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 88% of U.S. counties.
What drives Craighead County's score
In Craighead County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 88.7. Late payments on loans come next, at 82.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Craighead 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.
Craighead County does better than most counties on one measure: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector36.6% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people274.6 · 202588th percentile
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- 82.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.3% · second quarter of 202672nd percentile
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- 72.9 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 rent24.0% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.0% · fiscal year 202763rd percentile
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- 72.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.4% · 202481st percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.5% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability19.5% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- People without health insurance8.2% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,784 · 202473rd percentile
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- 51.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.7% · 2020 to 202456th 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 Craighead 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 Craighead County, 13.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Craighead County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Craighead County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 19.4% in 2004 to 25.0% in 2009.
In Craighead County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 24.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Craighead County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Craighead County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.0% in 2011 to 14.6% in 2012.
The share of households in Craighead County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 11.3% 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, Craighead County, Arkansas.
How Craighead County has changed
Craighead County's population had its largest rise, from 86,331 in 2004 to 95,482 in 2009.
Craighead County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 115,852, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 63,674. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Craighead County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Craighead County had its largest rise, from 29,447 in 1990 to 34,684 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Craighead County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 55,451, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 40,443. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Craighead County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.8% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 18.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,682 | 2024 $58,784 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Craighead County's history
1859
Officially formed February 19, 1859 from lands taken from Greene, Mississippi, and Poinsett counties. Wikipedia
1968
A tornado in May 1968 killed 34 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
A tornado in May 1973 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 111,231, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A tornado in March 2020 did $300 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Craighead County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Craighead County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Craighead County, in Arkansas and Missouri, five score higher. Of the group, Craighead County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Dunklin County gets the largest, at 41.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi County, AR | 97 | 20.0% | 28.6% |
| Dunklin County, MO | 96 | 25.4% | 41.3% |
| Jackson County, AR | 95 | 25.1% | 30.2% |
| Poinsett County, AR | 92 | 22.1% | 34.8% |
| Lawrence County, AR | 90 | 21.2% | 39.0% |
| Craighead County, AR | 88 | 18.4% | 24.3% |
| Greene County, AR | 85 | 14.1% | 30.3% |
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 Craighead County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Craighead County's poverty rate was 18.4% in 2024, 33rd 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, Craighead County ranks 28th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Craighead 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 Craighead 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 Craighead County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.