About one in four people in Labette County, Kansas, has a disability
In Labette County, 22.5% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 90% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Labette County's score
In Labette County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 73.6. Late payments on loans come next, at 63.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Labette 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.
Labette County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.7%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (76, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.1% · 202465th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.9% · 202467th percentile
- People with a disability22.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- People without health insurance9.5% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,633 · 202481st percentile
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- 63.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.6% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.0% · August 202572nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.1% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 53.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.3% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 48.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.1% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people76 · 202522nd percentile
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- 34.3 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 rent11.7% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th 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 Labette 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 Labette County, 20.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Labette County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Labette County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Labette County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Labette County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.8% in 2020 to 8.5% in 2021.
The share of households in Labette County getting SNAP food aid fell by about a fifth from 2009 to 2024, reaching 9.3%, with its low point on the chart in 2021
Low on the chart: 8.5% 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, Labette County, Kansas.
How Labette County has changed
Labette County's population fell by about a quarter to 19,692, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1999 to 2004, reaching 21,911. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Labette County, Kansas.
The number of jobs located in Labette County had its largest rise, from 9,437 in 1995 to 10,860 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Labette County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 10,860 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Labette County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.9% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.4% | 2024 15.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,865 | 2024 $55,633 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Labette County's history
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 34,047. The 2020 Census counted 20,184, 59% of the peak. Census Bureau
1959
A tornado in September 1959 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
A tornado in April 2000 did $71 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A tornado in May 2003 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in April 2009 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Labette County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Labette County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Labette County, in Kansas and Oklahoma, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Labette County ranks 4th of the seven; Craig County is highest, at 37.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, KS | 72 | 14.6% | 32.9% |
| Nowata County, OK | 72 | 15.3% | 33.6% |
| Craig County, OK | 68 | 17.6% | 37.4% |
| Crawford County, KS | 58 | 17.1% | 27.5% |
| Cherokee County, KS | 58 | 16.3% | 26.7% |
| Labette County, KS | 57 | 15.1% | 32.0% |
| Neosho County, KS | 53 | 13.3% | 28.9% |
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 Labette County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Labette County's poverty rate was 15.1% in 2024, 6th 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, Labette County ranks 10th of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Labette 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 Labette 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 Labette County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.