About one in 10 people in McLean County, Illinois, has a disability
In McLean County, 10.1% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives McLean County's score
In McLean County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 51.9. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 16.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McLean 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.
McLean 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.
- 51.9 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 rent22.2% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th percentile
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- 33.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.8% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
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- 33.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.5% · August 202524th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people112.1 · 202542nd percentile
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- 32.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.8% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.4% · second quarter of 202620th percentile
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- 16.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.6% · 202436th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.3% · 202410th percentile
- People with a disability10.1% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
- People without health insurance4.6% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$81,913 · 202417th 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 McLean 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 McLean County, 14.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McLean County
Illinois
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In McLean County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 14.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In McLean County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.9%; 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 McLean County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half to 10.3%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2011 to 2012, reaching 8.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, McLean County, Illinois.
How McLean County has changed
McLean County's population had its largest rise, from 102,599 in 1969 to 114,945 in 1974.
McLean County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 172,069
High on the chart: 173,998 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McLean County, Illinois.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in McLean County rose 41% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 84,891. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McLean County, Illinois.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.2% | 2024 11.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $32,186 | 2024 $81,913 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 McLean County's history
1830
Formed December 25, 1830, out of Tazewell County. Wikipedia
1981
A tornado in April 1981 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in August 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A thunderstorm in August 2012 did $3.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 170,954, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A flash flood in June 2021 did $11.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McLean County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
McLean County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border McLean County, four score higher. Of the group, McLean County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Logan County gets the largest, at 27.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Champaign County, IL | 42 | 18.8% | 15.5% |
| Logan County, IL | 39 | 11.3% | 27.4% |
| Ford County, IL | 27 | 9.3% | 20.6% |
| Tazewell County, IL | 25 | 8.3% | 21.4% |
| McLean County, IL | 21 | 11.6% | 14.9% |
| Livingston County, IL | 20 | 12.2% | 22.4% |
| De Witt County, IL | 17 | 9.9% | 23.6% |
| Piatt County, IL | 5 | 6.9% | 18.8% |
| Woodford County, IL | 5 | 5.5% | 16.9% |
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 McLean County the poorest county in Illinois?
No, McLean County's poverty rate was 11.6% in 2024, 57th 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, McLean County ranks 81st of 102 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McLean 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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Mid Central Community Action, 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 McLean 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 McLean County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.