About one in 17 people in Johnson County, Kansas, lives below the poverty line
In Johnson County, 6.0% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Johnson County's score
In Johnson County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 34.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 5.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Johnson 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.
Johnson 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.
- 34.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.9% · August 202510th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people145.3 · 202558th percentile
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- 31.9 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 rent18.2% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.0% · fiscal year 202713th percentile
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- 20.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202634th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.9% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
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- 9.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.0% · August 202510th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202512th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score25.6% · second quarter of 20264th percentile
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- 5.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.0% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.8% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability9.0% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
- People without health insurance4.9% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$109,357 · 20243rd 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 Johnson 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 Johnson County, 16.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Johnson County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Johnson County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 10.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about six times as much as benefit checks
In Johnson County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 10.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Johnson County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2019 to 2020, reaching 2.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Johnson County, Kansas.
How Johnson County has changed
Johnson County's population had its largest rise, from 294,556 in 1984 to 347,564 in 1989.
Johnson County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 632,276, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 232,845. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Johnson County, Kansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Johnson County doubled to 372,167, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 288,042. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Johnson County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.9% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.5% | 2024 6.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $41,815 | 2024 $109,357 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Johnson County's history
1966
A tornado in April 1966 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1991
A thunderstorm in May 1991 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A flash flood in October 1998 did $8 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in August 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 609,863, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
12 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Johnson County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Johnson County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Johnson County, in Kansas and Missouri, score higher than it does. Of the group, Johnson County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Wyandotte County gets the largest, at 25.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyandotte County, KS | 89 | 15.0% | 25.8% |
| Jackson County, MO | 72 | 14.3% | 21.1% |
| Cass County, MO | 32 | 7.0% | 19.8% |
| Douglas County, KS | 29 | 14.3% | 16.9% |
| Leavenworth County, KS | 26 | 9.2% | 20.7% |
| Miami County, KS | 14 | 7.2% | 17.8% |
| Johnson County, KS | 5 | 6.0% | 10.4% |
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 Johnson County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Johnson County's poverty rate was 6.0% in 2024, the lowest 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, Johnson County ranks 99th of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Johnson 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 Johnson 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 Johnson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.