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. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Boone County's score
In Boone County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 48.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 4.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Boone 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, Boone County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (204.9, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 48.1 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
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent15.2% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
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- 12.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20266th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.5% · 2020 to 202418th percentile
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- 11.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202519th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score25.8% · second quarter of 20264th percentile
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- 4.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line5.6% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.6% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability10.3% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$108,013 · 20243rd 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 Boone 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 Boone County, 15.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Boone County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Boone County had its largest rise, from 8.7% in 2004 to 11.6% in 2009.
In Boone County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 9.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about seven times as much as benefit checks
In Boone County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Boone County getting SNAP food aid moved most in three steps: 5.9% in 2014 to 6.8% in 2015; 6.7% in 2016 to 5.8% in 2017; 5.0% in 2019 to 4.1% in 2020.
The share of households in Boone County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2016 to 2017, reaching 5.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Boone County, Indiana.
How Boone County has changed
Boone County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 69,546 in 2019 to 78,773 in 2024.
Boone County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 78,773, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 37,889. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Boone County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Boone County had its largest rise in the last span, from 34,716 in 2020 to 47,871 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Boone County grew to about four times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 47,871, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 12,198. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Boone County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.3% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.2% | 2024 5.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $34,625 | 2024 $108,013 |
The table uses 2.8% for 2025; the score uses 2.7% 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 Boone County's history
1830
April 1, 1830 (created) 1831 (organized). Wikipedia
1965
A tornado in April 1965 did $25 million in property damage and killed 20 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
A tornado in May 1995 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in April 2004 did $1.65 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 70,812, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A thunderstorm in May 2022 killed one person. 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
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 | 82 | 15.8% | 16.3% |
| Montgomery County, IN | 36 | 10.3% | 26.0% |
| Clinton County, IN | 30 | 12.6% | 26.0% |
| Hendricks County, IN | 20 | 5.6% | 14.5% |
| Boone County, IN | 5 | 5.6% | 9.9% |
| Hamilton County, IN | 2 | 4.7% | 8.5% |
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 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.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Boone 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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Indiana Legal Services (ILS)
Legal aid
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Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic
Legal aid
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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 Boone County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.