About four in five adults aged 25 to 54 in Barton County, Kansas, have a job
In Barton County, 16.6% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 75% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 58% of U.S. counties.
What drives Barton County's score
In Barton County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 61.1. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 25.4. About one in eight renters (13.3%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 76% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Barton 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.
Even so, Barton County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (8.2%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.9% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.8% · 202453rd percentile
- People with a disability16.9% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- People without health insurance11.2% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,215 · 202463rd percentile
-
- 59.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.2% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.7% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
-
- 40.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.1% · August 202531st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people124.5 · 202549th percentile
-
- 38.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.6% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
-
- 25.5 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 rent13.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.5% · fiscal year 202727th percentile
-
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 Barton 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 Barton County, 20.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Barton County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Barton County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Barton County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Barton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 11.0% in 2016 to 9.1% in 2017.
The share of households in Barton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 7.0%
Low on the chart: 5.1% 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, Barton County, Kansas.
How Barton County has changed
Barton County's population fell by about a fifth to 24,835, the lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 1984 and 1989
High on the chart: 33,017 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Barton County, Kansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Barton County fell 12% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its lowest on the chart, with most of the change between 2015 and 2020
High on the chart: 13,388 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Barton County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.0% | 2024 13.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,786 | 2024 $62,215 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Barton County's history
1955
A tornado in September 1955 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 32,368. The 2020 Census counted 25,493, 79% of the peak. Census Bureau
2000
Hail in June 2000 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A tornado in April 2001 did $43 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in May 2007 did $30 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1965
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Barton County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Barton County beside its neighbors
Barton County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Barton County ranks 6th of the seven; Pawnee County is highest, at 28.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barton County, KS | 41 | 13.9% | 25.0% |
| Pawnee County, KS | 32 | 13.6% | 28.0% |
| Rush County, KS | 31 | 12.0% | 25.4% |
| Rice County, KS | 28 | 11.0% | 23.2% |
| Stafford County, KS | 27 | 11.6% | 26.1% |
| Ellsworth County, KS | 21 | 13.1% | 27.3% |
| Russell County, KS | 18 | 12.7% | 27.3% |
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 Barton County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Barton County's poverty rate was 13.9% in 2024, 14th highest of 105 in Kansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Riley County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Barton County ranks 21st of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Barton 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.
-
Kansas Legal Services
Legal aid
-
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 Barton 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 Barton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.