About three in ten people with a credit file in Whitfield County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Whitfield County, 30.4% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 69% of U.S. counties.
What drives Whitfield County's score
In Whitfield County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 84.4. Bankruptcy filings ran at 346.2 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 66.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Whitfield 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.
Whitfield County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (12.2%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.8%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.4% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people346.2 · 202593rd percentile
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- 66.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.5% · second quarter of 202670th percentile
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- 56.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.4% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.0% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability12.2% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- People without health insurance18.1% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,190 · 202448th percentile
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- 51.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.8% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
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- 46.4 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 rent18.0% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.1% · fiscal year 202743rd 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 Whitfield 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 Whitfield County, 14.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Whitfield County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Whitfield County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 22.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Whitfield County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Whitfield County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.0% in 2010 to 13.0% in 2011.
The share of households in Whitfield County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 11.2%
Low on the chart: 8.8% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Whitfield County, Georgia.
How Whitfield County has changed
Whitfield County's population had its largest rise, from 53,045 in 1969 to 62,799 in 1974.
Whitfield County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 105,070, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 103,246. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Whitfield County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Whitfield County had its largest drop, from 62,925 in 2005 to 52,842 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Whitfield County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 62,925 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Whitfield County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.8% | 2024 14.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,142 | 2024 $67,190 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Whitfield County's history
1851
Created December 30, 1851. Wikipedia
1884
The economy of Whitfield County suffered during Reconstruction but improved with the opening of the Crown Cotton Mill in Dalton in 1884. New Georgia Encyclopedia
1916
By 1916, 1,000 employees operated 50,000 spindles and 1,200 looms. New Georgia Encyclopedia
1934
The Great Depression and the General Textile Strike of 1934 dealt severe blows to the Crown Cotton Mill, which managed to stay in operation until 1969. New Georgia Encyclopedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A thunderstorm in June 2011 did $1.25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Carpet mills closed and downsized, Dalton lost 4,600 jobs from June 2011 to June 2012. Wikipedia
2018
Lightning in July 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 102,864, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Whitfield County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Whitfield County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Whitfield County, in Georgia and Tennessee, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Whitfield County ranks 6th of the seven; Walker County is highest, at 30.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murray County, GA | 76 | 15.7% | 29.9% |
| Walker County, GA | 75 | 12.8% | 30.8% |
| Whitfield County, GA | 69 | 14.4% | 22.9% |
| Bradley County, TN | 68 | 11.6% | 25.6% |
| Gordon County, GA | 67 | 12.1% | 23.8% |
| Hamilton County, TN | 54 | 14.5% | 19.6% |
| Catoosa County, GA | 53 | 10.4% | 24.2% |
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 Whitfield County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Whitfield County's poverty rate was 14.4% in 2024, 98th 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, Whitfield County ranks 107th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Whitfield 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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Dalton-whitfield Community Dev. Corp.
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 Whitfield 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 Whitfield County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.