About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Linn County, Iowa, have a job
In Linn County, 12.7% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Linn County's score
In Linn County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 45.6. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 18.6. About one in 24 people (4.1%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Linn 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.
Linn 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.
- 45.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.5% · August 202536th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people136.3 · 202554th percentile
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- 32.1 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 rent18.6% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.7% · fiscal year 202711th percentile
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- 27.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.9% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.3% · August 202535th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.0% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 19.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.7% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
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- 18.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.6% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.9% · 202422nd percentile
- People with a disability11.9% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,639 · 202428th 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 Linn 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 Linn County, 17.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Linn County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Linn County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 19.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Linn County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Linn County getting SNAP food aid moved most in three steps: 9.9% in 2011 to 10.9% in 2012; 11.1% in 2017 to 10.1% in 2018; 10.1% in 2018 to 9.1% in 2019.
The share of households in Linn County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 8.1% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Linn County, Iowa.
How Linn County has changed
Linn County's population rose 43% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 210,217. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Linn County, Iowa.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Linn County rose by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 125,508, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 129,160 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Linn County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.1% | 2024 9.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,974 | 2024 $75,639 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Linn County's history
1837
December 21, 1837 (created) June 1, 1839 (organized). Wikipedia
1871
Sinclair meatpacking company founded 1871, employed 400 people and became one of largest factories of its kind. Wikipedia
1873
Quaker Oats oatmeal mill built 1873, became largest cereal mill in the world. Wikipedia
1990
A tornado in March 1990 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A thunderstorm in July 1992 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
Cedar River flooding June 2008 and August 2020 Midwest derecho damage. Wikipedia
2008
A flood in June 2008 did $750 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 230,299, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A thunderstorm in August 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Linn County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Linn County beside its neighbors
Linn County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Linn County ranks 5th of the seven; Jones County is highest, at 22.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linn County, IA | 15 | 9.6% | 19.1% |
| Jones County, IA | 11 | 12.0% | 22.4% |
| Johnson County, IA | 10 | 17.7% | 14.5% |
| Cedar County, IA | 5 | 7.9% | 18.1% |
| Buchanan County, IA | 4 | 10.5% | 21.3% |
| Benton County, IA | 3 | 7.2% | 19.4% |
| Delaware County, IA | 2 | 8.5% | 19.4% |
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 Linn County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Linn County's poverty rate was 9.6% in 2024, 71st 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, Linn County ranks 41st of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Linn 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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Horizons, a Family Service Alliance (horizons Cccs)
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Linn County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.