About one in 18 people in Boone County, Indiana, lives below the poverty line
In Boone County, 5.6% of people lived below the poverty line (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024). That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Boone County's score
In Boone County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 48.2. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 4.9. About one in 18 people (5.6%, 2024) lives below the poverty line, a lower share than in 98% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Even so, Boone County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (204.9, 2025).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Boone County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 48.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.4% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people204.9 · 202575th percentile
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- 23.4 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent15.2% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 18.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202519th percentile
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score18.4% · Q4 202526th percentile
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- 12.4 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.5% · 2020 to 202418th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average2.7% · Sep 2025 to Aug 20266th percentile
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- 4.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line5.6% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability10.3% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$108,013 · 20243rd percentile
- People below the poverty line5.6% · 20241st percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Boone County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Boone County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Boone County in 2024, pay from work was 68 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 23 cents. Benefit checks were 10 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
That split has held roughly steady since 1969, when benefit checks were 6 cents of every dollar.
In Boone County, pay from work still brings in most of the money
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Boone County, Indiana: 9.9% and 67.6% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 9.9% of all personal income in Boone County, Indiana (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Boone County, 15.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Boone County has changed
The number of people living in Boone County more than doubled between 1969 and 2024, from 30,584 to 78,773. The number of jobs located there more than doubled from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment rose from 2.3% in 1990 to 2.8% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 30,584 | 2024 78,773 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 11,165 | 2024 45,424 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.3% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.2% | 2024 5.6% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $34,625 | 2024 $108,013 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 6.0% | 2024 9.9% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Boone County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 70,812, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
1830
April 1, 1830 (created) 1831 (organized). Wikipedia
1965
Tornado: $25 million in property damage, 20 deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
Tornado: $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
Tornado: $1.65 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2022
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Boone County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Boone County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Boone County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Boone County ranks 5th of the six; Montgomery County is highest, at 26.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marion County, IN | 83 | 15.8% | 16.3% |
| Montgomery County, IN | 37 | 10.3% | 26.0% |
| Clinton County, IN | 30 | 12.6% | 26.0% |
| Hendricks County, IN | 22 | 5.6% | 14.5% |
| Boone County, IN | 6 | 5.6% | 9.9% |
| Hamilton County, IN | 2 | 4.7% | 8.5% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Boone County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Boone County's poverty rate was 5.6% in 2024, 90th highest of 92 in Indiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Delaware County, at 20.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Boone County ranks 90th of 92 in the state.
Boone County in photographs
Places in Boone County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Boone County Courthouse in Lebanon, Indiana, United States.
Boone County, Indiana: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Boone County, Indiana?
5.6% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in 18 people. Among children it was 5.6%.
Is Boone County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Boone County's poverty rate was 5.6% in 2024, 90th highest of 92 in Indiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Delaware County, at 20.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Boone County ranks 90th of 92 in the state.
What is the population of Boone County, Indiana?
About 78,773 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 70,812, the most of any census.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Boone County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Indiana Legal Services (ILS)
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,313 approved agencies 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 Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Boone County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.