In Riley County, Kansas, benefit checks make up only 16 cents of every dollar of income
In Riley County, 15.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Riley County's score
In Riley County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 68.5. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 21.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 49 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Riley 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, Riley County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (24.8%, 2020 to 2024) and people below the poverty line (18.1%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.5 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent24.8% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th percentile
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- 44.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.1% · 202480th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.2% · 202423rd percentile
- People with a disability12.3% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- People without health insurance7.0% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,086 · 202457th percentile
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- 38.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.0% · second quarter of 202625th percentile
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- 24.4 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 202633rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.9% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
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- 21.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.8% · August 202533rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people49 · 20259th 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 Riley 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 Riley County, 10.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Riley County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Riley County had its largest rise in the last span, from 13.4% in 2019 to 15.8% in 2024.
In Riley County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 15.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Riley County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 15.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Riley County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.2% in 2019 to 7.3% in 2020.
The share of households in Riley County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 6.7%
Low on the chart: 3.8% 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, Riley County, Kansas.
How Riley County has changed
Riley County's population had its largest rise, from 51,615 in 1969 to 61,542 in 1974.
Riley County's population rose 41% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 76,087 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Riley County, Kansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Riley County rose by about half to 30,406, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 30,406. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Riley County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.5% | 2024 18.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,190 | 2024 $64,086 |
The table uses 3.4% 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 Riley County's history
1855
Established August 25, 1855. Wikipedia
1999
Lightning in August 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A tornado in June 2008 did $66 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in September 2018 did $17.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 71,959, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A tornado in June 2022 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1966
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Riley County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Riley County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Riley County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Riley County ranks 6th of the seven; Marshall County is highest, at 29.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geary County, KS | 69 | 12.4% | 19.8% |
| Riley County, KS | 31 | 18.1% | 15.8% |
| Clay County, KS | 26 | 10.2% | 28.0% |
| Marshall County, KS | 22 | 11.7% | 29.3% |
| Wabaunsee County, KS | 9 | 8.4% | 21.0% |
| Washington County, KS | 3 | 11.1% | 26.3% |
| Pottawatomie County, KS | 1 | 6.8% | 15.2% |
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 Riley County the poorest county in Kansas?
Yes, Riley County's poverty rate was 18.1% in 2024, the highest of 105 counties in Kansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Riley County ranks 35th of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Riley 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.
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 Riley County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.