About one in five people in Garland County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Garland County, 22.4% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Garland County's score
In Garland County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 80.2. Bankruptcy filings ran at 261.6 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 86% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 75.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Garland 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.
Garland County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 80.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people261.6 · 202586th percentile
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- 75.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.6% · second quarter of 202671st percentile
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- 69.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.2% · 202458th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.3% · 202465th percentile
- People with a disability22.4% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance9.5% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,915 · 202470th percentile
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- 63.7 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 rent20.2% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.2% · fiscal year 202764th percentile
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- 61.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202659th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.1% · 2020 to 202464th 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 Garland 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 Garland County, 24.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Garland County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Garland County had its largest rise, from 24.5% in 2004 to 30.0% in 2009.
In Garland County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 34.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Garland County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 34.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Garland County getting SNAP food aid fell most in two steps: 13.5% in 2017 to 12.2% in 2018; 11.5% in 2022 to 10.2% in 2023.
The share of households in Garland County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 12.2%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Garland County, Arkansas.
How Garland County has changed
Garland County's population had its largest rise, from 53,535 in 1969 to 63,691 in 1974.
Garland County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 99,902, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 99,902. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Garland County, Arkansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Garland County rose 45% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 31,987. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Garland County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.1% | 2024 14.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,689 | 2024 $59,915 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Garland County's history
1832
Hot Springs Reservation established by Congress 1832. Wikipedia
1873
Formed April 5, 1873 during the Reconstruction era from portions of Hot Spring, Montgomery, and Saline counties. Wikipedia
1921
Hot Springs National Park established 1921. Wikipedia
2006
Lightning in August 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A thunderstorm in April 2011 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $21 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A thunderstorm in June 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 100,180, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Garland County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Garland County beside its neighbors
Garland County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Garland County ranks 3rd of the six; Montgomery County is highest, at 40.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garland County, AR | 83 | 14.2% | 34.7% |
| Hot Spring County, AR | 81 | 15.4% | 35.9% |
| Montgomery County, AR | 79 | 19.8% | 40.5% |
| Perry County, AR | 79 | 14.8% | 31.1% |
| Yell County, AR | 58 | 15.9% | 30.7% |
| Saline County, AR | 30 | 9.8% | 23.3% |
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 Garland County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Garland County's poverty rate was 14.2% in 2024, 60th 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, Garland County ranks 37th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Garland 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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Southern Bancorp Community Partners
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Garland 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 Garland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.