Unemployment in Taylor County, Iowa, is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties
In Taylor County, 2.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Taylor County's score
In Taylor County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 36.8. Jobs are the lowest part, at 6.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Taylor 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.
Taylor 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.
- 36.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.4% · 202443rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.7% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability14.8% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- People without health insurance3.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,373 · 202460th percentile
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- 29.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.7% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.5% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.8% · second quarter of 202640th percentile
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- 26.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.4% · August 202543rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people50.6 · 20259th percentile
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- 26.4 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 rent15.6% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.5% · fiscal year 202717th percentile
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- 6.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower 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 Taylor 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 Taylor County, 22.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Taylor County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Taylor County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Taylor County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Taylor County getting SNAP food aid moved most in four steps: 7.0% in 2010 to 9.2% in 2011; 9.2% in 2011 to 11.4% in 2012; 12.5% in 2016 to 10.3% in 2017; 9.1% in 2019 to 6.9% in 2020.
The share of households in Taylor County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 6.4% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Taylor County, Iowa.
How Taylor County has changed
Taylor County's population had its largest drop, from 8,090 in 1984 to 7,188 in 1989.
Taylor County's population fell by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 5,825, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 8,331. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Taylor County, Iowa.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Taylor County rose 41% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 1,916. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Taylor County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 2.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.2% | 2024 12.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,882 | 2024 $63,373 |
The table uses 2.4% for 2025; the score uses 2.2% 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 Taylor County's history
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 18,784. The 2020 Census counted 5,896, 31% of the peak. Census Bureau
1979
A tornado in March 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1981
A tornado in April 1981 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in May 2011 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in May 2011 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1979
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Taylor County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Taylor County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Taylor County, in Iowa and Missouri, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Taylor County ranks 4th of the six; Worth County is highest, at 32.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page County, IA | 22 | 14.5% | 30.5% |
| Worth County, MO | 21 | 14.8% | 32.8% |
| Nodaway County, MO | 18 | 15.0% | 27.6% |
| Adams County, IA | 13 | 12.1% | 27.8% |
| Taylor County, IA | 10 | 12.4% | 28.9% |
| Ringgold County, IA | 10 | 13.3% | 30.6% |
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 Taylor County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Taylor County's poverty rate was 12.4% in 2024, 26th 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, Taylor County ranks 57th of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Taylor 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 Taylor 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 Taylor County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.