About one in four people in Randolph County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Randolph County, 24.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Randolph County's score
In Randolph County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.0. People with a credit card behind: 8.0%, August 2025, higher than in 84% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 76.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Randolph 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.
Randolph County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (79.3, 2025) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit 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 behind6.4% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.9% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 76.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.1% · 202480th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.0% · 202479th percentile
- People with a disability24.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance7.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,352 · 202483rd percentile
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- 65.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.0% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
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- 54.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.3% · August 202582nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people79.3 · 202525th percentile
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- 49.7 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 rent19.2% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.1% · fiscal year 202742nd 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 Randolph 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 Randolph County, 19.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Randolph County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Randolph County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 28.8% in 2004 to 38.6% in 2009.
In Randolph County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 36.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Randolph County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Randolph County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 15.3% in 2019 to 11.7% in 2020.
The share of households in Randolph County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 15.7%
Low on the chart: 11.7% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Randolph County, Arkansas.
How Randolph County has changed
Randolph County's population rose by about half to 19,040, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 14,930. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Randolph County, Arkansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Randolph County rose 42% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2015 and 2020
High on the chart: 6,419 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Randolph County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.4% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.7% | 2024 18.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,681 | 2024 $54,352 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Randolph County's history
1829
Davidsonville rapid decline around 1829 due to southwest trail moved to permanent road. Wikipedia
1835
October 29, 1835, as Arkansas's 32nd county, broken off from Lawrence County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 18,987. The 2020 Census counted 18,571, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2008
A flood in April 2008 did $2.25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in May 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A flood in May 2017 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A flash flood in May 2017 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Randolph County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Randolph County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Randolph County, in Arkansas and Missouri, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Randolph County ranks 6th of the seven; Oregon County is highest, at 45.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ripley County, MO | 96 | 21.9% | 44.8% |
| Lawrence County, AR | 90 | 21.2% | 39.0% |
| Greene County, AR | 85 | 14.1% | 30.3% |
| Sharp County, AR | 84 | 18.9% | 41.7% |
| Oregon County, MO | 82 | 20.1% | 45.0% |
| Clay County, AR | 76 | 15.9% | 36.8% |
| Randolph County, AR | 74 | 18.1% | 36.7% |
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 Randolph County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Randolph County's poverty rate was 18.1% in 2024, 36th 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, Randolph County ranks 47th of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Randolph 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 Randolph 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 Randolph County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.