About three in ten people in Sumter County, Georgia, live below the poverty line
In Sumter County, 27.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 97% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sumter County's score
In Sumter County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.9. People with a credit card behind: 12.1%, August 2025, higher than in 98% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 93.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sumter 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.
Sumter County does better than most counties on one measure: people with a disability (13.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.1% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score59.5% · second quarter of 202695th percentile
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- 93.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector41.4% · August 202595th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people304.6 · 202591st percentile
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- 79.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line27.6% · 202497th percentile
- Children below the poverty line45.7% · 202499th percentile
- People with a disability13.1% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance14.0% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$49,955 · 202491st percentile
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- 74.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.5% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 72.0 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 rent18.5% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income27.4% · fiscal year 202791st 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 Sumter 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 Sumter County, 17.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sumter County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sumter County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 39% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Sumter County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 34.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sumter County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 27.8% in 2017 to 23.6% in 2018.
The share of households in Sumter County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 19.8% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sumter County, Georgia.
How Sumter County has changed
Sumter County's population had its largest rise, from 30,186 in 1989 to 31,928 in 1994.
Sumter County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 32,957 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sumter County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Sumter County had its largest rise, from 12,206 in 1990 to 15,008 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Sumter County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 15,008 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sumter County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.8% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.9% | 2024 27.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,780 | 2024 $49,955 |
The table uses 4.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Sumter County's history
1831
Sumter County was created on December 26, 1831. Wikipedia
1971
A tornado in January 1971 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
A tornado in February 1990 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 33,200. The 2020 Census counted 29,616, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
2007
A tornado in March 2007 did $110 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A tornado in April 2009 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sumter County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sumter County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Sumter County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sumter County ranks 4th of the nine; Webster County is highest, at 42.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terrell County, GA | 99 | 27.3% | 34.3% |
| Sumter County, GA | 97 | 27.6% | 34.5% |
| Crisp County, GA | 96 | 22.8% | 33.1% |
| Macon County, GA | 95 | 29.9% | 29.3% |
| Marion County, GA | 89 | 22.1% | 36.1% |
| Webster County, GA | 86 | 19.7% | 42.0% |
| Dooly County, GA | 85 | 25.6% | 36.7% |
| Schley County, GA | 67 | 15.4% | 26.2% |
| Lee County, GA | 45 | 9.7% | 19.9% |
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 Sumter County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Sumter County's poverty rate was 27.6% in 2024, 10th 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, Sumter County ranks 13th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sumter 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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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 Sumter 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 Sumter County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.