About one in 18 people in Hendricks County, Indiana, lives below the poverty line
In Hendricks County, 5.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hendricks County's score
In Hendricks County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 60.8. Jobs are the lowest part, at 7.6. Unemployment averaged 2.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hendricks 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, Hendricks County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (262.9, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 60.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.0% · August 202534th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people262.9 · 202586th percentile
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- 50.0 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 rent19.9% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202739th percentile
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- 35.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.9% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.5% · second quarter of 202617th percentile
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- 7.8 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 line6.6% · 20242nd percentile
- People with a disability10.2% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
- People without health insurance5.2% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$93,476 · 20248th percentile
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- 7.6 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 20267th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.7% · 2020 to 20247th 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 Hendricks 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 Hendricks 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
Hendricks County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hendricks County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 14.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Hendricks County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hendricks County getting SNAP food aid moved most in four steps: 2.8% in 2011 to 3.5% in 2012; 3.5% in 2012 to 4.2% in 2013; 4.2% in 2013 to 4.9% in 2014; 4.8% in 2016 to 4.1% in 2017.
The share of households in Hendricks County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 3.3%
Low on the chart: 2.8% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hendricks County, Indiana.
How Hendricks County has changed
Hendricks County's population had its largest rise, from 100,514 in 1999 to 124,115 in 2004.
Hendricks County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 190,629, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 71,106. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hendricks County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Hendricks County had its largest rise, from 50,032 in 2010 to 63,321 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Hendricks County grew to about five times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 81,450, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 21,720. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hendricks County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.3% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.5% | 2024 5.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $39,217 | 2024 $93,476 |
The table uses 3.0% 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 Hendricks County's history
1823
December 20, 1823 (created) Summer 1824 (organized). Wikipedia
1994
A thunderstorm in April 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in September 2003 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in June 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 174,788, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A thunderstorm in July 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1996
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hendricks County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hendricks County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Hendricks County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hendricks 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% |
| Morgan County, IN | 49 | 9.4% | 23.1% |
| Montgomery County, IN | 36 | 10.3% | 26.0% |
| Hendricks County, IN | 20 | 5.6% | 14.5% |
| Putnam County, IN | 19 | 10.9% | 23.9% |
| Boone County, IN | 5 | 5.6% | 9.9% |
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 Hendricks County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Hendricks 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, Hendricks County ranks 78th of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hendricks 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 Hendricks 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 Hendricks County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.