Benefit checks make up 35 cents of every dollar of income in Sedgwick County, Colorado
In Sedgwick County, 35.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 82% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sedgwick County's score
In Sedgwick County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 74.6. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 23.6% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), higher than in 75% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 70.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sedgwick 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.
Sedgwick County does better than most counties on two measures: adults 25 to 54 not working (13.7%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a subprime credit score (33.0%, Q2 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.6 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent22.2% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
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- 70.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.6% · 202461st percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.2% · 202476th percentile
- People with a disability16.9% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- People without health insurance10.0% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,589 · 202488th percentile
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- 62.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.7% · August 202556th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people174 · 202568th percentile
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- 46.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.9% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202521st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.0% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 19.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202627th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.7% · 2020 to 202410th 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 Sedgwick 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 Sedgwick County, 24.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sedgwick County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sedgwick County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 35.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Sedgwick County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 35.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sedgwick County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.6% in 2016 to 15.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Sedgwick County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2012, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 5.3% in 2012. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sedgwick County, Colorado.
How Sedgwick County has changed
Sedgwick County's population fell 36% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 2,765. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sedgwick County, Colorado.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Sedgwick County fell 12% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
High on the chart: 859 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sedgwick County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.8% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.5% | 2024 14.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,708 | 2024 $51,589 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Sedgwick County's history
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 5,580. The 2020 Census counted 2,404, 43% of the peak. Census Bureau
1960
A tornado in June 1960 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sedgwick County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sedgwick County beside its neighbors
Sedgwick County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Colorado and Nebraska. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sedgwick County ranks 2nd of the six; Deuel County is highest, at 36.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sedgwick County, CO | 57 | 14.6% | 35.1% |
| Logan County, CO | 42 | 17.0% | 22.7% |
| Deuel County, NE | 21 | 11.9% | 36.0% |
| Cheyenne County, NE | 21 | 11.8% | 28.3% |
| Phillips County, CO | 10 | 11.4% | 28.0% |
| Perkins County, NE | 2 | 9.3% | 18.4% |
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 Sedgwick County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, Sedgwick County's poverty rate was 14.6% in 2024, 20th highest of 64 in Colorado (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Crowley County, at 39.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Sedgwick County ranks 18th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sedgwick 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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Colorado Legal Services
Legal aid
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Colorado Bar Association — Find a Lawyer directory
Find a lawyer
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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 Sedgwick 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 Sedgwick County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.