About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Scott County, Kansas, have a job
In Scott County, 9.8% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Scott County's score
In Scott County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 43.6. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 5.0. About one in 100 renters (0.9%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Scott 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.
Scott 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.
- 43.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.2% · August 202523rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people162.5 · 202564th percentile
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- 40.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.5% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.9% · second quarter of 202645th percentile
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- 24.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.1% · 20245th or lower percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.2% · 20246th percentile
- People with a disability15.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,974 · 202425th percentile
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- 10.0 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 202614th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working9.8% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
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- 5.0 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 rent0.9% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.0% · fiscal year 20275th or lower 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 Scott 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 Scott County, 20.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Scott County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Scott County had its largest rise, from 9.9% in 1999 to 16.3% in 2004.
In Scott County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 17.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Scott County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 4.5% in 2013 to 0.9% in 2014.
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2015, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 0.3% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Scott County, Kansas.
How Scott County has changed
Scott County's population fell 12% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1984 and 1989
High on the chart: 5,862 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Scott County, Kansas.
The number of jobs located in Scott County had its largest drop, from 2,170 in 2000 to 1,959 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Scott County rose 17% from 1990 to 2020, then turned down in 2025
High on the chart: 2,230 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Scott County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.9% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.3% | 2024 7.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,145 | 2024 $76,974 |
The table uses 3.0% 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 Scott County's history
1873
Established March 20, 1873. Wikipedia
1950
A tornado in July 1950 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1956
A tornado in July 1956 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 5,782. The 2020 Census counted 5,151, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
1999
A thunderstorm in May 1999 did $1.55 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A thunderstorm in April 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 2005
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Scott County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Scott County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Scott County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Scott County ranks 4th of the seven; Logan County is highest, at 22.0%.
| 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% |
| Wichita County, KS | 16 | 10.9% | 18.3% |
| Logan County, KS | 12 | 10.1% | 22.0% |
| Scott County, KS | 10 | 7.1% | 17.6% |
| Gove County, KS | 6 | 10.3% | 15.9% |
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 Scott County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Scott County's poverty rate was 7.1% in 2024, 102nd 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, Scott County ranks 90th of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Scott 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 Scott County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.