About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Russell County, Kansas, have a job
In Russell County, 10.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Russell County's score
In Russell County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 49.8. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 17.1. About one in 11 renters (9.1%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 89% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Russell 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.
Russell 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.
- 49.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.7% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability15.5% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- People without health insurance6.9% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,325 · 202460th percentile
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- 36.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.1% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.5% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.6% · second quarter of 202658th percentile
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- 33.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people119 · 202546th percentile
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- 21.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202638th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working10.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
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- 17.1 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 rent9.1% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.2% · fiscal year 202723rd 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 Russell 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 Russell County, 26.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Russell County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Russell County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Russell County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Russell County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.8% in 2021 to 13.8% in 2022.
The share of households in Russell County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2018, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 4.8% in 2018. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Russell County, Kansas.
How Russell County has changed
Russell County's population fell by about a third to 6,620, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 8,033. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Russell County, Kansas.
The number of jobs located in Russell County had its largest drop, from 2,764 in 2015 to 2,341 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Russell County fell by about a quarter from 1990 to 2020, reaching 2,341, then turned up in 2025
High on the chart: 3,051 in 1990. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Russell County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.7% | 2024 12.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,556 | 2024 $63,325 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Russell County's history
1867
Established February 26, 1867. Wikipedia
1876
Volga Germans settled in Russell area beginning 1876. Wikipedia
1923
First oil well drilled in Russell County 1923, oil boom through 1930s. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 13,464. The 2020 Census counted 6,691, 50% of the peak. Census Bureau
1993
A tornado in May 1993 did $5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A thunderstorm in July 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Russell County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Russell County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Russell County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Russell County ranks 4th of the seven; Lincoln County is highest, at 32.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barton County, KS | 41 | 13.9% | 25.0% |
| Rush County, KS | 31 | 12.0% | 25.4% |
| Lincoln County, KS | 25 | 11.6% | 32.5% |
| Ellsworth County, KS | 21 | 13.1% | 27.3% |
| Osborne County, KS | 20 | 11.3% | 30.0% |
| Russell County, KS | 18 | 12.7% | 27.3% |
| Ellis County, KS | 11 | 12.5% | 20.3% |
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 Russell County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Russell County's poverty rate was 12.7% in 2024, 30th 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, Russell County ranks 71st of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Russell 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 Russell 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 Russell County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.