Unemployment in Adams County, Iowa, is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Adams 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 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Adams County's score
In Adams County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 43.2. Jobs are the lowest part, at 9.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Adams 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.
Adams 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.
- 43.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202519th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.4% · second quarter of 202639th percentile
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- 34.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.1% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.9% · 202438th percentile
- People with a disability13.7% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
- People without health insurance3.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,213 · 202457th percentile
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- 32.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.2% · August 202527th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202536th percentile
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- 18.4 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 rent11.9% · 2020 to 202418th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.6% · fiscal year 202718th percentile
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- 10.0 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 working14.6% · 2020 to 202414th 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 Adams 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 Adams County, 24.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Adams County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Adams County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Adams County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 13.5% in 2023 to 9.5% in 2024.
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen to 9.5%
Low on the chart: 6.6% 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, Adams County, Iowa.
How Adams County has changed
Adams County's population had its largest drop, from 5,423 in 1984 to 4,987 in 1989.
Adams County's population fell 41% from 1969 to 2024, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 2019 to 2024, reaching 3,606. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Adams County, Iowa.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Adams County fell by about a quarter to 1,168, the lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 1,578 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Adams County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 2.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.8% | 2024 12.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,301 | 2024 $64,213 |
The table uses 2.7% 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 Adams County's history
1853
Established by state legislature in 1851, organized and separated from Pottawattamie County on March 12, 1853. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 13,601. The 2020 Census counted 3,704, 27% of the peak. Census Bureau
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1989
A tornado in May 1989 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in April 1999 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A tornado in May 2024 did $1.8 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Adams County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Adams County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Adams County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Adams County ranks 4th of the six; Montgomery County is highest, at 32.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, IA | 50 | 14.6% | 32.5% |
| Union County, IA | 34 | 13.4% | 32.4% |
| Cass County, IA | 24 | 11.6% | 26.2% |
| Adams County, IA | 13 | 12.1% | 27.8% |
| Adair County, IA | 11 | 10.2% | 24.0% |
| Taylor County, IA | 10 | 12.4% | 28.9% |
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 Adams County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Adams County's poverty rate was 12.1% in 2024, 28th highest of 99 in Iowa (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Decatur County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Adams County ranks 44th of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Adams 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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Iowa Legal Aid
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 Adams County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.