Benefit checks make up 37 cents of every dollar of income in Polk County, Arkansas
In Polk County, 37.2% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Polk County's score
In Polk County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 79.3. The typical household earns $47,544 a year (2024), less than in 94% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 70.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Polk 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.
Polk County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.9%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (87.5, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.7% · 202478th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.1% · 202476th percentile
- People with a disability21.7% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance9.0% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,544 · 202494th percentile
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- 70.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202672nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.9% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
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- 63.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.0% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.3% · August 202536th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.3% · second quarter of 202670th percentile
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- 48.7 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 rent13.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.9% · fiscal year 202770th percentile
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- 46.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.5% · August 202562nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87.5 · 202529th 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 Polk 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 Polk County, 22.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Polk County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Polk County had its largest rise, from 29.1% in 2004 to 36.6% in 2009.
In Polk County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 30% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Polk County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Polk County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 17.0% in 2017 to 14.0% in 2018.
The share of households in Polk County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 12.5%
Low on the chart: 10.9% 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, Polk County, Arkansas.
How Polk County has changed
Polk County's population had its largest rise, from 13,188 in 1969 to 15,243 in 1974.
Polk County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19,434
High on the chart: 20,583 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Polk County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Polk County rose most sharply from its first year (5,150 in 1990) to 6,239 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Polk County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 6,933 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Polk County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.7% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.3% | 2024 17.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,884 | 2024 $47,544 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Polk County's history
1897
Bank of Mena founded in 1897. Wikipedia
1910
Railroad moved shop facilities from Mena to Heavener, Oklahoma in 1910, loss of eight hundred jobs. Wikipedia
1950
A tornado in January 1950 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1979
A tornado in April 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
A tornado in November 1993 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A tornado in April 2009 did $130 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 20,662. The 2020 Census counted 19,221, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1968
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Polk County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Polk County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Polk County, in Arkansas and Oklahoma, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Polk County ranks 3rd of the seven; Montgomery County is highest, at 40.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Howard County, AR | 90 | 18.5% | 31.0% |
| Le Flore County, OK | 88 | 19.2% | 37.4% |
| Scott County, AR | 88 | 20.3% | 33.6% |
| McCurtain County, OK | 85 | 21.2% | 35.1% |
| Montgomery County, AR | 79 | 19.8% | 40.5% |
| Sevier County, AR | 71 | 15.6% | 25.9% |
| Polk County, AR | 70 | 17.7% | 37.2% |
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 Polk County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Polk County's poverty rate was 17.7% in 2024, 38th 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, Polk County ranks 55th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Polk 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.
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 Polk County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.