About one in five people in Crawford County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Crawford County, 19.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 77% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Crawford County's score
In Crawford County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 79.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 232.7 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 82% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 71.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Crawford 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.
Crawford County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.8%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.6% · August 202575th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people232.7 · 202582nd percentile
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- 71.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.1% · August 202585th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.3% · August 202552nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.5% · second quarter of 202675th percentile
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- 69.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202660th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
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- 62.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.1% · 202457th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.9% · 202454th percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance9.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,606 · 202462nd percentile
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- 31.3 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 rent15.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.8% · fiscal year 202729th 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 Crawford 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 Crawford County, 17.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Crawford County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Crawford County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 30.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Crawford County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Crawford County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.9% in 2016 to 13.1% in 2017.
The share of households in Crawford County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen to 10.2%
Low on the chart: 10.0% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Crawford County, Arkansas.
How Crawford County has changed
Crawford County's population more than doubled to 62,258, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 36,392. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Crawford County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Crawford County had its largest rise, from 13,631 in 1995 to 16,704 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Crawford County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 19,498 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Crawford County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.3% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.9% | 2024 14.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,300 | 2024 $62,606 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Crawford County's history
1820
Formed on October 18, 1820 from the former Lovely County and Indian Territory. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in October 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A tornado in April 1996 did $0.15 billion in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 61,948. The 2020 Census counted 60,133, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2015
A flood in May 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
A tornado in May 2021 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Crawford County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Crawford County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Crawford County, in Arkansas and Oklahoma, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Crawford County ranks 4th of the seven; Sequoyah County is highest, at 38.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adair County, OK | 95 | 22.4% | 38.5% |
| Sequoyah County, OK | 92 | 19.6% | 38.9% |
| Crawford County, AR | 71 | 14.1% | 30.9% |
| Sebastian County, AR | 71 | 12.9% | 26.2% |
| Franklin County, AR | 64 | 13.7% | 32.6% |
| Madison County, AR | 56 | 12.9% | 27.1% |
| Washington County, AR | 41 | 13.5% | 16.7% |
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 Crawford County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Crawford County's poverty rate was 14.1% in 2024, 61st 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, Crawford County ranks 52nd of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Crawford 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 Crawford 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 Crawford County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.