About one in 11 people in Cobb County, Georgia, has a disability
In Cobb County, 9.4% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cobb County's score
In Cobb County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 70.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 17.6. Unemployment averaged 3.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cobb 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.
Even so, Cobb County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (228.5, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 70.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.7% · August 202559th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people228.5 · 202581st percentile
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- 64.7 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 rent23.2% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th percentile
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- 57.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.8% · second quarter of 202640th percentile
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- 22.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.7% · 202413th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.8% · 202412th percentile
- People with a disability9.4% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance12.0% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$102,071 · 20244th percentile
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- 17.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.5% · 2020 to 202418th 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 Cobb 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 Cobb County, 13.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cobb County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cobb County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 12.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Cobb County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cobb County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 3.8% in 2009 to 5.1% in 2010; 7.2% in 2012 to 8.5% in 2013.
The share of households in Cobb County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 3.8% 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, Cobb County, Georgia.
How Cobb County has changed
Cobb County's population had its largest rise, from 353,206 in 1984 to 439,006 in 1989.
Cobb County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 787,538, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 787,538. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cobb County, Georgia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Cobb County doubled to 381,663, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 246,393. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cobb County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.0% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.1% | 2024 8.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $41,423 | 2024 $102,071 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Cobb County's history
1930
Cotton prices crashed from 16¢ per pound in 1920 to 9½¢ in 1930. Wikipedia
1942
Bell Aircraft opened Marietta plant to manufacture B-29 bombers in 1942. Wikipedia
1991
A tornado in March 1991 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
A tornado in February 1993 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
A tornado in June 1995 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 766,149, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cobb County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cobb County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Cobb County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cobb County ranks 5th of the six; Douglas County is highest, at 23.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Douglas County, GA | 81 | 10.7% | 23.0% |
| Bartow County, GA | 64 | 10.7% | 21.4% |
| Fulton County, GA | 61 | 11.3% | 8.9% |
| Paulding County, GA | 54 | 6.6% | 16.5% |
| Cobb County, GA | 44 | 8.7% | 12.3% |
| Cherokee County, GA | 19 | 6.8% | 14.3% |
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 Cobb County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Cobb County's poverty rate was 8.7% in 2024, 145th highest of 159 in Georgia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Calhoun County, at 36.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cobb County ranks 142nd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cobb 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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National Faith Homebuyers, Atlanta Branch
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Atlanta Legal Aid Society
Legal aid
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Georgia Legal Aid
Legal help website
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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 Cobb County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.