About one in five people in Greene County, Indiana, has a disability
In Greene County, 19.7% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 78% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Greene County's score
In Greene County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 63.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 192.3 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 72% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 55.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Greene 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.
Greene County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.1%, fiscal year 2027) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.4% · August 202554th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people192.3 · 202572nd percentile
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- 55.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.8% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.9% · 202448th percentile
- People with a disability19.7% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance7.4% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,268 · 202448th percentile
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- 52.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.4% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.6% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
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- 47.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202627th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.9% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
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- 35.8 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 rent18.0% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.1% · fiscal year 202722nd 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 Greene 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 Greene County, 20.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Greene County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Greene County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Greene County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Greene County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.4% in 2011 to 12.6% in 2012.
The share of households in Greene County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.6% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Greene County, Indiana.
How Greene County has changed
Greene County's population had its largest rise, from 26,873 in 1969 to 29,042 in 1974.
Greene County's population rose 16% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 33,384 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Greene County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Greene County had its largest drop, from 7,286 in 2005 to 6,641 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Greene County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 8,076 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Greene County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.5% | 2024 13.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,564 | 2024 $67,268 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Greene County's history
1821
Formed in 1821 from unincorporated territory and from a portion of the previous Sullivan County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 36,873. The 2020 Census counted 30,803, 84% of the peak. Census Bureau
2007
A flood in January 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in June 2008 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in January 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A tornado in May 2025 did $1.05 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1979
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Greene County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Greene County beside its neighbors
Greene County scores higher than all eight counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Greene County ranks 5th of the nine; Sullivan County is highest, at 33.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greene County, IN | 51 | 13.8% | 28.9% |
| Sullivan County, IN | 51 | 14.2% | 33.5% |
| Knox County, IN | 46 | 11.9% | 31.1% |
| Lawrence County, IN | 45 | 12.4% | 28.5% |
| Clay County, IN | 41 | 12.0% | 32.1% |
| Owen County, IN | 37 | 12.2% | 30.0% |
| Monroe County, IN | 35 | 16.8% | 18.0% |
| Daviess County, IN | 27 | 12.4% | 19.5% |
| Martin County, IN | 23 | 12.2% | 27.6% |
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 Greene County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Greene County's poverty rate was 13.8% in 2024, 22nd 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, Greene County ranks 30th of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Greene 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.
Download the CSV for Greene 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 Greene County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.