About two in five people with a credit file in Muscogee County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Muscogee County, 43.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Muscogee County's score
In Muscogee County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 96.3. Late payments on loans come next, at 89.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Muscogee 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.
Muscogee County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 96.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector43.6% · August 202597th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people366.6 · 202594th percentile
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- 89.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.9% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.4% · August 202585th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score54.8% · second quarter of 202689th percentile
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- 84.5 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 rent24.4% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.3% · fiscal year 202784th percentile
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- 71.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.3% · 202477th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.1% · 202465th percentile
- People with a disability17.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- People without health insurance11.1% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,609 · 202476th percentile
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- 64.3 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 202656th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.6% · 2020 to 202471st 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 Muscogee 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 Muscogee County, 14.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Muscogee County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Muscogee County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 27.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Muscogee County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 27.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Muscogee County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.1% in 2010 to 16.5% in 2011.
The share of households in Muscogee County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 16.8%
Low on the chart: 14.7% 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, Muscogee County, Georgia.
How Muscogee County has changed
Muscogee County's population had its largest rise, from 188,796 in 2009 to 205,196 in 2014.
Muscogee County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 201,830
High on the chart: 205,759 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Muscogee County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Muscogee County had its largest rise, from 85,382 in 1995 to 98,762 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Muscogee County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 98,762 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Muscogee County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.1% | 2024 17.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,716 | 2024 $57,609 |
The table uses 4.1% 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 Muscogee County's history
1825
Land for Muscogee County ceded by Creek chiefs in 1825. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in April 1953 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
Mill closed permanently at Bibb City, before December 2000. Wikipedia
2000
Bibb City, a company town that disincorporated in December 2000. Wikipedia
2007
A tornado in March 2007 did $28 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A tornado in April 2009 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A thunderstorm in July 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 206,922, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1990
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Muscogee County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Muscogee County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Muscogee County, in Georgia and Alabama, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Muscogee County ranks 3rd of the six; Talbot County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Talbot County, GA | 99 | 22.0% | 39.7% |
| Russell County, AL | 98 | 20.2% | 35.5% |
| Muscogee County, GA | 95 | 17.3% | 27.2% |
| Chattahoochee County, GA | 67 | 17.8% | 15.5% |
| Lee County, AL | 61 | 16.9% | 19.7% |
| Harris County, GA | 31 | 8.8% | 21.0% |
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 Muscogee County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Muscogee County's poverty rate was 17.3% in 2024, 80th 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, Muscogee County ranks 22nd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Muscogee 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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Columbus Housing Initiative, Inc. Dba Neighborworks Columbus
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Urban League of Greater Columbus, Inc
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Georgia Legal Services Program
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.
Download the CSV for Muscogee 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 Muscogee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.