Unemployment in Pulaski County, Indiana, is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Pulaski County, 2.6% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 67% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pulaski County's score
In Pulaski County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 59.7. Jobs are the lowest part, at 23.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pulaski 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.
Pulaski County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 59.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.7% · August 202548th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people185.7 · 202571st percentile
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- 49.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.0% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.4% · 202440th percentile
- People with a disability18.3% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- People without health insurance7.0% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,929 · 202452nd percentile
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- 36.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202524th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.6% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.1% · second quarter of 202642nd percentile
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- 32.0 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.5% · fiscal year 202726th percentile
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- 23.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.3% · 2020 to 202441st 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 Pulaski 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 Pulaski County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pulaski County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pulaski County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Pulaski County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pulaski County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 13.9% in 2017 to 11.4% in 2018.
The share of households in Pulaski County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 8.1%
Low on the chart: 6.6% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pulaski County, Indiana.
How Pulaski County has changed
Pulaski County's population had its largest rise, from 12,692 in 1989 to 13,288 in 1994.
Pulaski County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 13,754 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pulaski County, Indiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Pulaski County rose 44% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 5,996. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pulaski County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.4% | 2024 12.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,312 | 2024 $65,929 |
The table uses 2.9% for 2025; the score uses 2.6% 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 Pulaski County's history
1835
Organized in 1835. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 14,033. The 2020 Census counted 12,514, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
1951
A tornado in June 1951 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A tornado in June 1998 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pulaski County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pulaski County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Pulaski County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pulaski County ranks 5th of the six; Starke County is highest, at 35.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton County, IN | 60 | 11.8% | 27.0% |
| Cass County, IN | 58 | 13.7% | 31.9% |
| Starke County, IN | 56 | 11.2% | 35.7% |
| White County, IN | 33 | 12.1% | 26.8% |
| Pulaski County, IN | 32 | 12.0% | 25.7% |
| Jasper County, IN | 32 | 10.1% | 22.9% |
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 Pulaski County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Pulaski County's poverty rate was 12.0% in 2024, 41st 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, Pulaski County ranks 56th of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pulaski 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 Pulaski 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 Pulaski County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.