Unemployment in Stark County, Illinois, is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties
In Stark County, 5.1% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 55% of U.S. counties.
What drives Stark County's score
In Stark County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 80.3. People with a credit card behind: 10.9%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 57.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Stark 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.
Stark County does better than most counties on two measures: people below the poverty line (10.5%, 2024) and people without health insurance (5.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 80.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.9% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.8% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.6% · second quarter of 202658th percentile
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- 57.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202684th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.4% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
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- 56.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.5% · August 202551st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people153.3 · 202561st percentile
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- 41.4 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 rent14.8% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd percentile
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- 33.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.5% · 202426th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability14.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- People without health insurance5.8% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$69,557 · 202441st 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 Stark 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 Stark County, 22.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Stark County
Illinois
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Stark County had its largest rise, from 17.3% in 2004 to 22.8% in 2009.
In Stark County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Stark County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Stark County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 10.0% in 2017 to 12.0% in 2018; 11.1% in 2021 to 13.1% in 2022.
The share of households in Stark County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 11.6%
Low on the chart: 6.3% 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, Stark County, Illinois.
How Stark County has changed
Stark County's population fell by about a third to 5,272, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 6,563. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Stark County, Illinois.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Stark County rose by about a quarter to 1,673, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 1,673 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Stark County, Illinois.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.4% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.4% | 2024 10.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,274 | 2024 $69,557 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Stark County's history
1839
Formed in 1839 out of Knox and Putnam counties. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 10,186. The 2020 Census counted 5,400, 53% of the peak. Census Bureau
1972
A tornado in July 1972 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in April 2013 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in June 2013 did $9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1999
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Stark County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Stark County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Stark County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Stark County ranks 4th of the six; Knox County is highest, at 33.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peoria County, IL | 69 | 15.3% | 21.0% |
| Knox County, IL | 62 | 15.7% | 33.9% |
| Stark County, IL | 55 | 10.5% | 25.0% |
| Marshall County, IL | 26 | 9.2% | 26.4% |
| Bureau County, IL | 18 | 9.2% | 26.0% |
| Henry County, IL | 18 | 9.4% | 21.7% |
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 Stark County the poorest county in Illinois?
No, Stark County's poverty rate was 10.5% in 2024, 66th 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, Stark County ranks 19th of 102 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Stark 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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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.
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 Stark County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.