About one in 11 people in Jersey County, Illinois, lives below the poverty line
In Jersey County, 9.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 82% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jersey County's score
In Jersey County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 47.4. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 20.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jersey 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.
Jersey County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 47.4 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent16.7% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202753rd percentile
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- 39.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.7% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
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- 37.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.1% · August 202527th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people123.3 · 202548th percentile
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- 36.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.5% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.3% · August 202536th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.0% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 20.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.5% · 202418th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.9% · 202417th percentile
- People with a disability13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance5.0% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,236 · 202424th 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 Jersey 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 Jersey County, 20.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jersey County
Illinois
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jersey County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 25.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Jersey County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Jersey County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 10.2% in 2015 to 13.7% in 2016.
The share of households in Jersey County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 11.9%
Low on the chart: 7.0% 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, Jersey County, Illinois.
How Jersey County has changed
Jersey County's population rose most sharply from its first year (18,399 in 1969) to 19,526 in 1974.
Jersey County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 23,060 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jersey County, Illinois.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Jersey County rose 36% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 4,659. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jersey County, Illinois.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.8% | 2024 9.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,638 | 2024 $77,236 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Jersey County's history
1673
Father Marquette and Louis Jolliet arrived as first European explorers in 1673. Wikipedia
1839
Founded on February 28, 1839, formed out of Greene County. Wikipedia
1961
A tornado in September 1961 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1983
A tornado in May 1983 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 22,985. The 2020 Census counted 21,512, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
2015
A flash flood in December 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jersey County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jersey County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Jersey County, in Illinois and Missouri, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jersey County ranks 4th of the six; Greene County is highest, at 29.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macoupin County, IL | 41 | 10.6% | 28.5% |
| Madison County, IL | 40 | 9.6% | 22.8% |
| Greene County, IL | 30 | 14.0% | 29.5% |
| Jersey County, IL | 26 | 9.5% | 25.4% |
| Calhoun County, IL | 15 | 10.0% | 27.3% |
| St. Charles County, MO | 7 | 6.3% | 15.6% |
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 Jersey County the poorest county in Illinois?
No, Jersey County's poverty rate was 9.5% in 2024, 77th highest of 102 in Illinois (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Alexander County, at 24.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Jersey County ranks 71st of 102 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jersey 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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Land of Lincoln Legal Aid
Legal aid
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Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO)
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 Jersey 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 Jersey County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.