About two in five people with a credit file in Mississippi County, Arkansas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Mississippi County, 43.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 97% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mississippi County's score
In Mississippi County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.9. People with a credit card behind: 12.0%, August 2025, higher than in 98% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 90.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mississippi 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.
Mississippi County does better than most counties on one measure: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.0% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.0% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score61.6% · second quarter of 202697th percentile
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- 90.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector43.1% · August 202597th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people243.1 · 202584th percentile
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- 81.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.0% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.7% · 202487th percentile
- People with a disability22.9% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,924 · 202486th percentile
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- 78.9 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 202673rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.7% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
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- 69.6 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 rent26.1% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.6% · fiscal year 202749th 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 Mississippi 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 Mississippi County, 15.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mississippi County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Mississippi County had its largest rise, from 23.0% in 2004 to 32.1% in 2009.
In Mississippi County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Mississippi County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mississippi County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 21.1% in 2013 to 24.2% in 2014.
The share of households in Mississippi County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 16.8% 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, Mississippi County, Arkansas.
How Mississippi County has changed
Mississippi County's population fell 40% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1989 to 1994, reaching 51,744. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mississippi County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Mississippi County had its largest drop, from 21,694 in 2000 to 18,356 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Mississippi County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 21,694 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mississippi County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.4% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.1% | 2024 20.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,665 | 2024 $52,924 |
The table uses 4.8% 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 Mississippi County's history
1833
Founded November 1, 1833. Wikipedia
1862
Battle of Plum Point Bend between Confederate and Union forces on the Mississippi River. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 82,375. The 2020 Census counted 40,685, 49% of the peak. Census Bureau
1952
A tornado in March 1952 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A tornado in April 1998 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
A tornado in December 2021 did $1.25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mississippi County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mississippi County beside its neighbors
Of the nine counties that border Mississippi County, in Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mississippi County ranks 6th of the 10; Dunklin County is highest, at 41.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pemiscot County, MO | 99 | 23.7% | 37.6% |
| Crittenden County, AR | 99 | 22.5% | 31.3% |
| Lauderdale County, TN | 98 | 20.7% | 34.7% |
| Mississippi County, AR | 97 | 20.0% | 28.6% |
| Dunklin County, MO | 96 | 25.4% | 41.3% |
| Shelby County, TN | 95 | 19.0% | 19.5% |
| Poinsett County, AR | 92 | 22.1% | 34.8% |
| Craighead County, AR | 88 | 18.4% | 24.3% |
| Dyer County, TN | 74 | 14.3% | 26.9% |
| Tipton County, TN | 62 | 13.6% | 24.0% |
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 Mississippi County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Mississippi County's poverty rate was 20.0% in 2024, 23rd 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, Mississippi County ranks 8th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mississippi 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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Mississippi County, Arkansas Economic Opportunity Commission, Inc.
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 Mississippi 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 Mississippi County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.