Unemployment in Palo Alto County, Iowa, is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Palo Alto 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 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Palo Alto County's score
In Palo Alto County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 31.6. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 7.3. About one in nine people with a credit file (11.3%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 93% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Palo Alto 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.
Palo Alto 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.
- 31.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.8% · 202438th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.4% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability13.3% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,377 · 202448th percentile
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- 25.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.4% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.3% · August 202552nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.7% · second quarter of 202618th percentile
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- 16.2 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 rent13.0% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.5% · fiscal year 202710th percentile
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- 10.8 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 working15.0% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
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- 7.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.3% · August 20256th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people45.4 · 20257th 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 Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County, 22.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Palo Alto County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Palo Alto County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 22.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Palo Alto County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Palo Alto County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.7% in 2011 to 8.6% in 2012.
The share of households in Palo Alto County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 10.0%
Low on the chart: 5.6% 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, Palo Alto County, Iowa.
How Palo Alto County has changed
Palo Alto County's population had its largest drop, from 12,163 in 1984 to 10,763 in 1989.
Palo Alto County's population fell by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8,809, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1969 to 1974, reaching 13,312. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Palo Alto County, Iowa.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Palo Alto County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 3,659, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 3,808 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Palo Alto County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 2.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.0% | 2024 11.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,313 | 2024 $67,377 |
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 Palo Alto County's history
1845
Emmetsburg settled by Irish immigrants during Great Famine of Ireland between 1845 and 1852. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 16,170. The 2020 Census counted 8,996, 56% of the peak. Census Bureau
1980
A tornado in July 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
Lightning in June 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Palo Alto County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Palo Alto County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Palo Alto County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Palo Alto County ranks 4th of the five; Emmet County is highest, at 26.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emmet County, IA | 21 | 11.9% | 26.8% |
| Pocahontas County, IA | 21 | 11.0% | 25.5% |
| Clay County, IA | 13 | 11.3% | 20.5% |
| Palo Alto County, IA | 3 | 11.8% | 22.7% |
| Kossuth County, IA | 3 | 8.9% | 23.2% |
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 Palo Alto County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Palo Alto County's poverty rate was 11.8% in 2024, 31st 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, Palo Alto County ranks 81st of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Palo Alto 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.
Download the CSV for Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.