About one in four people in Sharp County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Sharp County, 24.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sharp County's score
In Sharp County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 81.4. Jobs come next, at 80.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sharp 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.
Sharp County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.9% · 202483rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.6% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability24.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance8.2% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$48,226 · 202494th percentile
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- 80.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.8% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
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- 70.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.3% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.9% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 65.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.7% · August 202575th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people139.1 · 202555th percentile
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- 53.3 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 rent16.2% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.6% · fiscal year 202768th 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 Sharp 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 Sharp County, 25.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sharp County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Sharp County had its largest rise, from 36.1% in 2004 to 44.4% in 2009.
In Sharp County, benefit checks brought in more than pay in three of the bars shown, but pay leads in 2024
In Sharp County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 41.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sharp County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.5% in 2012 to 17.5% in 2013.
The share of households in Sharp County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen to 17.3%
Low on the chart: 14.6% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sharp County, Arkansas.
How Sharp County has changed
Sharp County's population more than doubled to 18,130, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 14,263. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sharp County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Sharp County rose most sharply from its first year (2,562 in 1990) to 3,601 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Sharp County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 4,294 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sharp County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.5% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.4% | 2024 18.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,287 | 2024 $48,226 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Sharp County's history
1982
A tornado in December 1982 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A tornado in February 2008 did $30 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in March 2008 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A thunderstorm in April 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 17,271, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sharp County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sharp County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Sharp County, in Arkansas and Missouri, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sharp County ranks 4th of the seven; Fulton County is highest, at 47.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence County, AR | 90 | 21.2% | 39.0% |
| Sharp County, AR | 84 | 18.9% | 41.7% |
| Izard County, AR | 83 | 21.3% | 44.1% |
| Oregon County, MO | 82 | 20.1% | 45.0% |
| Fulton County, AR | 74 | 16.3% | 47.3% |
| Randolph County, AR | 74 | 18.1% | 36.7% |
| Independence County, AR | 65 | 17.0% | 29.8% |
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 Sharp County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Sharp County's poverty rate was 18.9% in 2024, 30th 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, Sharp County ranks 33rd of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sharp 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 Sharp County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.