About one in 10 people in Will County, Illinois, has a disability

In Will County, 10.0% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.

Photo of Ross Kilburn
Data from
County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026
40th
of 102 counties in Illinois
41score /100

Less distressed than 58% of U.S. counties.

What drives Will County's score

In Will County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 75.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 8.9. The typical household earns $109,888 a year (2024), more than in 96% of U.S. counties.

The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Will 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.

Even so, Will County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (25.2%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (232.9, 2025).

A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.

  • Housing costs

    Biggest factor
    75.0 of 100

    Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027

    • Renters paying half their income or more in rent
      25.2% · 2020 to 2024
      87th percentile
    • Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income
      22.0% · fiscal year 2027
      62nd percentile

  • Collections and bankruptcy

    54.5 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025

    • People with unpaid debt sent to a collector
      17.0% · August 2025
      26th percentile
    • Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people
      232.9 · 2025
      82nd percentile

  • Jobs

    52.3 of 100

    Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey

    • Unemployment rate, average over the latest year
      4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
      78th percentile
    • Adults 25 to 54 not working
      16.9% · 2020 to 2024
      26th percentile

  • Late payments

    34.1 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026

    • People with a credit card behind
      4.9% · August 2025
      39th percentile
    • People with a car or retail loan behind
      4.8% · August 2025
      44th percentile
    • People with a subprime credit score
      31.4% · second quarter of 2026
      17th percentile

  • Income and safety net

    9.0 of 100

    Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey

    • People below the poverty line
      7.7% · 2024
      6th percentile
    • Children below the poverty line
      8.9% · 2024
      9th percentile
    • People with a disability
      10.0% · 2020 to 2024
      4th percentile
    • People without health insurance
      5.2% · 2020 to 2024
      21st percentile
    • Median household income (lower income, longer bar)
      $109,888 · 2024
      3rd percentile

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 Will 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 Will 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

Will County

69 17 14

Illinois

62 21 17

United States

61 21 18
  • Pay from work
  • Investments and rent
  • Benefit checks
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, 2024. Pay from work is total income minus the other two, so the three add to 100.

In Will County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 14.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks

In Will County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.

  • Benefit checks
  • Pay from work
0%45%90% 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 0%45%90% 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, Will County, Illinois American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/will-county-il/
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SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.

The share of households in Will County getting SNAP food aid doubled to 10.1%, the highest on the chart

Biggest rise: 2011 to 2012, reaching 7.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Will County, Illinois.

0%10%20% 4.9%10.1% 2009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 0%10%20% 4.9%10.1% 20092011201320152017201920212024
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/will-county-il/
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How Will County has changed

Will County's population had its largest rise, from 486,207 in 1999 to 605,934 in 2004.

Will County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 708,583, with no dip in any year shown

Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 696,609. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Will County, Illinois.

0400,000800,000 244,122708,583 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 0400,000800,000 244,122708,583 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/will-county-il/
Download data (CSV)

The number of jobs located in Will County had its largest rise in the last span, from 238,592 in 2020 to 267,868 in 2025.

The number of jobs located in Will County tripled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 267,868, with no dip in any year shown

Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 238,592. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Will County, Illinois.

0150,000300,000 91,248267,868 19901995200020052010201520202025 0150,000300,000 91,248267,868 19901995200020052010201520202025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/will-county-il/
Download data (CSV)
MeasureThenNowSource
Unemployment rateBLS LAUS 1990 6.5% 2025 4.6% BLS LAUS
People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE 1989 6.9% 2024 7.7% Census SAIPE
Median household incomeCensus SAIPE 1989 $38,701 2024 $109,888 Census SAIPE

The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Will County's history

  1. 1836

    Formed on January 12, 1836, out of Cook and Iroquois Counties. It originally included the part of Kankakee County north of the Kankakee River. It lost that area when Kankakee County was organized in 1852. Since then its boundaries have not changed. Wikipedia

  2. 1965

    A tornado in November 1965 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database

  3. 1990

    A tornado in August 1990 did $250 million in property damage and killed 29 people. NOAA Storm Events Database

  4. 1991

    A tornado in March 1991 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database

  5. 1991

    A tornado in March 1991 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database

  6. 2020

    The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 696,355, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau

  7. Since 1967

    19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Will County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA

Will County beside its neighbors

Of the six counties that border Will County, in Illinois and Indiana, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Will County ranks 5th of the seven; Kankakee County is highest, at 27.2%.

CountyDistress scoreScoreRank in its state Poverty rateBenefit checks, share of incomeBenefit checks
Lake County, IN 81 6th of 92 13.3% 24.7%
Cook County, IL 72 8th of 102 13.7% 16.6%
Kankakee County, IL 69 11th of 102 13.1% 27.2%
Will County, IL 41 40th of 102 7.7% 14.1%
Grundy County, IL 34 54th of 102 5.8% 16.3%
Kendall County, IL 25 76th of 102 4.2% 11.4%
DuPage County, IL 19 83rd of 102 6.3% 11.1%

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 Will County the poorest county in Illinois?

No, Will County's poverty rate was 7.7% in 2024, 92nd 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, Will County ranks 40th of 102 in the state.

If you're behind on your mortgage in Will 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.

Illinois foreclosure guide →

The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.

Download the CSV for Will County · Every U.S. county (CSV)

Cite this Will County, Illinois, scores 41 on the County Distress Index (data through Sep 2026): less distressed than 58% of U.S. counties · American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/will-county-il/

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 Will County comes from, 2024.
  • History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.