About one in four people in Prairie County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Prairie County, 22.9% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives Prairie County's score
In Prairie County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 74.2. People with a credit card behind: 9.7%, August 2025, higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 71.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Prairie 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.
Prairie County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.0%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.9%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.7% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.4% · second quarter of 202673rd percentile
-
- 71.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.5% · August 202558th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people248.9 · 202585th percentile
-
- 68.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.9% · 202470th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.2% · 202473rd percentile
- People with a disability22.9% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- People without health insurance6.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,689 · 202476th percentile
-
- 57.1 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 202657th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.8% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
-
- 22.9 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 rent11.0% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th percentile
-
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 Prairie 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 Prairie County, 23.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Prairie County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Prairie County rose most in two steps: 24.7% in 2004 to 30.2% in 2009; 28.9% in 2014 to 34.4% in 2019.
In Prairie County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 33.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Prairie County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Prairie County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 16.1% in 2009 to 13.2% in 2010.
The share of households in Prairie 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: 11.1% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Prairie County, Arkansas.
How Prairie County has changed
Prairie County's population had its largest drop, from 9,590 in 1999 to 9,111 in 2004.
Prairie County's population fell by about a quarter to 7,935, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 10,496 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Prairie County, Arkansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Prairie County fell by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 1,437, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 1,860 in 1990. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Prairie County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.4% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.8% | 2024 15.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,802 | 2024 $57,689 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Prairie County's history
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 17,447. The 2020 Census counted 8,282, 47% of the peak. Census Bureau
1927
Des Arc vulnerable to major floods in 1927 and 1937. Wikipedia
1952
A tornado in March 1952 killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1988
A tornado in November 1988 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in October 2004 did $12.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in May 2011 did $15 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1969
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Prairie County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Prairie County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Prairie County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Prairie County ranks 3rd of the six; Monroe County is highest, at 41.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe County, AR | 96 | 22.8% | 41.9% |
| Arkansas County, AR | 95 | 20.0% | 26.4% |
| Woodruff County, AR | 93 | 25.6% | 34.6% |
| White County, AR | 80 | 17.4% | 29.3% |
| Prairie County, AR | 64 | 15.9% | 33.2% |
| Lonoke County, AR | 51 | 10.0% | 24.7% |
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 Prairie County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Prairie County's poverty rate was 15.9% in 2024, 51st 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, Prairie County ranks 64th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Prairie 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.
-
Legal Aid of Arkansas
Legal aid
-
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 Prairie 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 Prairie County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.