About one in 16 people in McHenry County, Illinois, lives below the poverty line
In McHenry County, 6.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 75% of U.S. counties.
What drives McHenry County's score
In McHenry County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 72.5. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 5.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McHenry 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.
McHenry 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.
- 72.5 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 rent21.6% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.5% · fiscal year 202774th percentile
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- 40.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202666th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.4% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
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- 38.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.8% · August 202514th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people161.4 · 202563rd percentile
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- 17.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202525th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.5% · second quarter of 20267th percentile
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- 5.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.3% · 20242nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.9% · 20243rd percentile
- People with a disability10.1% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$102,725 · 20244th 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 McHenry 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 McHenry County, 16.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McHenry County
Illinois
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In McHenry County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 15.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In McHenry County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in McHenry County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled to 7.4%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2015 to 2016, reaching 7.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, McHenry County, Illinois.
How McHenry County has changed
McHenry County's population had its largest rise, from 176,311 in 1989 to 219,478 in 1994.
McHenry County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 315,959, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 309,052. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McHenry County, Illinois.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in McHenry County rose by more than half to 98,058, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 75,573. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McHenry County, Illinois.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.1% | 2024 6.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $42,882 | 2024 $102,725 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 McHenry County's history
1958
A tornado in October 1958 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1965
A tornado in April 1965 killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A flood in July 2017 did $3.9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 310,229, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McHenry County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
McHenry County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border McHenry County, in Illinois and Wisconsin, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, McHenry County ranks 6th of the eight; DeKalb County is highest, at 20.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County, IL | 72 | 13.7% | 16.6% |
| DeKalb County, IL | 50 | 11.6% | 20.5% |
| Boone County, IL | 43 | 8.4% | 19.1% |
| Kenosha County, WI | 37 | 9.8% | 19.5% |
| Kane County, IL | 36 | 7.3% | 14.6% |
| Lake County, IL | 30 | 7.8% | 10.3% |
| McHenry County, IL | 24 | 6.3% | 15.6% |
| Walworth County, WI | 12 | 7.9% | 17.7% |
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 McHenry County the poorest county in Illinois?
No, McHenry County's poverty rate was 6.3% in 2024, 97th 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, McHenry County ranks 78th of 102 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McHenry 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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Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Northern Illinois
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Restoration America, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Prairie State Legal Services
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 McHenry 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 McHenry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.