In Finney County, Kansas, benefit checks make up only 17 cents of every dollar of income
In Finney County, 16.9% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Finney County's score
In Finney County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 54.9. Jobs are the lowest part, at 24.9. Unemployment averaged 3.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Finney 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, Finney County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 54.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.1% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.1% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 45.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.7% · 202437th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.6% · 202442nd percentile
- People with a disability13.5% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- People without health insurance12.7% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,195 · 202440th percentile
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- 35.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.4% · August 202550th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people72.1 · 202520th percentile
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- 29.1 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 rent12.1% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202738th percentile
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- 24.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202615th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.2% · 2020 to 202434th 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 Finney 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 Finney County, 11.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Finney County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Finney County had its largest rise, from 11.1% in 1999 to 13.8% in 2004.
In Finney County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Finney County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Finney County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.6% in 2019 to 11.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Finney County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 11.4%
Low on the chart: 8.3% 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, Finney County, Kansas.
How Finney County has changed
Finney County's population had its largest rise, from 23,263 in 1979 to 29,947 in 1984.
Finney County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38,354
High on the chart: 39,863 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Finney County, Kansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Finney County rose by about a quarter to 20,620, the highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2000 to 2005, reaching 17,249. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Finney County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.2% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,641 | 2024 $70,195 |
The table uses 2.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Finney County's history
1879
Garden City founded by Jones and Plummer cattle firm as shipping point. Wikipedia
1879
Garden City Ditch irrigation completed following sustained drought. Wikipedia
1890
Population boomed from 537 in 1880 to over 5,000 by 1890 as homesteaders poured in. Wikipedia
1967
A tornado in June 1967 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
Hail in September 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
Hail in July 1999 did $53 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 40,523. The 2020 Census counted 38,470, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
2007
A thunderstorm in August 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Finney County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Finney County beside its neighbors
Finney County scores higher than all seven counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Finney County ranks 5th of the eight; Ness County is highest, at 27.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finney County, KS | 29 | 11.7% | 16.9% |
| Kearny County, KS | 23 | 10.6% | 16.9% |
| Lane County, KS | 17 | 10.1% | 19.6% |
| Hodgeman County, KS | 11 | 9.6% | 18.7% |
| Haskell County, KS | 10 | 10.1% | 12.2% |
| Scott County, KS | 10 | 7.1% | 17.6% |
| Ness County, KS | 4 | 11.3% | 27.4% |
| Gray County, KS | 0 | 7.9% | 12.6% |
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 Finney County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Finney County's poverty rate was 11.7% in 2024, 49th 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, Finney County ranks 42nd of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Finney 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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Kansas Legal Services
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 Finney 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 Finney County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.