About one in four people in Ware County, Georgia, lives below the poverty line
In Ware County, 23.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ware County's score
In Ware County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 92.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 449.7 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 85.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ware 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.
Ware County does better than most counties on one measure: people with a disability (15.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 92.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.6% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people449.7 · 202597th percentile
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- 85.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.6% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.0% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability15.8% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
- People without health insurance16.8% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,717 · 202494th percentile
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- 84.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.2% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score60.1% · second quarter of 202696th percentile
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- 74.0 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 rent20.2% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.4% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 70.2 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 202654th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.3% · 2020 to 202485th 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 Ware 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 Ware County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ware County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ware County rose most in two steps: 22.7% in 1989 to 26.8% in 1994; 27.1% in 1999 to 31.2% in 2004.
In Ware County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 40.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Ware County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 40.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ware County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 24.8% in 2016 to 21.5% in 2017.
The share of households in Ware County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 21.9%
Low on the chart: 12.3% 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, Ware County, Georgia.
How Ware County has changed
Ware County's population rose 7% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1969 and 1974
High on the chart: 37,555 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ware County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Ware County rose most sharply from its first year (13,694 in 1990) to 15,518 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Ware County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 16,059 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ware County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.5% | 2024 23.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,503 | 2024 $47,717 |
The table uses 4.3% 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 Ware County's history
1824
Created December 15, 1824 from Appling County. Wikipedia
1941
Laura S. Walker National Park established 1937-1941 with WPA and CCC labor. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 37,180. The 2020 Census counted 36,251, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
1986
A tornado in February 1986 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A thunderstorm in January 1999 did $2.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
Lightning in July 2025 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ware County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ware County beside its neighbors
Ware County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in Georgia and Florida. Of the group, Ware County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (40.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ware County, GA | 96 | 23.6% | 40.9% |
| Charlton County, GA | 91 | 20.4% | 34.2% |
| Clinch County, GA | 89 | 22.0% | 35.8% |
| Coffee County, GA | 88 | 23.3% | 29.3% |
| Atkinson County, GA | 87 | 28.3% | 29.9% |
| Bacon County, GA | 80 | 20.7% | 31.7% |
| Brantley County, GA | 76 | 15.6% | 33.1% |
| Pierce County, GA | 70 | 17.2% | 32.9% |
| Baker County, FL | 61 | 13.0% | 26.8% |
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 Ware County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Ware County's poverty rate was 23.6% in 2024, 25th 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, Ware County ranks 21st of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ware 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.
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 Ware County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.