Unemployment in Boyle County, Kentucky, is higher than in 69% of U.S. counties
In Boyle County, 4.6% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 69% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 72% of U.S. counties.
What drives Boyle County's score
In Boyle County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 75.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 238.8 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 83% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 69.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Boyle 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.
Boyle County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (17.6%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (6.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.0% · August 202567th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people238.8 · 202583rd percentile
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- 69.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.0% · second quarter of 202663rd percentile
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- 63.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.7% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
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- 56.6 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 rent28.7% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.6% · fiscal year 202718th percentile
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- 52.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.8% · 202463rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.0% · 202444th percentile
- People with a disability17.2% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- People without health insurance6.3% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,052 · 202461st 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 Boyle 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 Boyle County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Boyle County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Boyle County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Boyle County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Boyle County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.1% in 2011 to 17.1% in 2012.
The share of households in Boyle County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 11.9%
Low on the chart: 9.0% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Boyle County, Kentucky.
How Boyle County has changed
Boyle County's population had its largest rise, from 22,935 in 1974 to 24,819 in 1979.
Boyle County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31,394, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1999 to 2004, reaching 27,832. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Boyle County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Boyle County had its largest rise, from 13,699 in 1995 to 17,964 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Boyle County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 17,964 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Boyle County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.3% | 2025 4.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 14.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,138 | 2024 $63,052 |
The table uses 4.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Boyle County's history
1775
Archibald McNeill planted Kentucky's first recorded hemp crop in 1775 at Clark's Run Creek near Danville. Wikipedia
1842
Formed February 15, 1842 from Lincoln County and Mercer County. Wikipedia
1860
Fire devastated Danville in 1860, destroying 64 buildings and causing over 300,000 dollars in damages. Wikipedia
1915
Hemp became the state's largest cash crop until 1915 when it lost its market to imported jute. Wikipedia
1970
Danville's African-American business sector on 2nd Street demolished under urban renewal in 1970s. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 30,614, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Boyle County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Boyle County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Boyle County, two score higher. Of the group, Boyle County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Casey County gets the largest, at 42.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casey County, KY | 89 | 18.8% | 42.3% |
| Lincoln County, KY | 77 | 17.3% | 37.5% |
| Boyle County, KY | 72 | 14.8% | 28.5% |
| Garrard County, KY | 62 | 14.3% | 30.0% |
| Washington County, KY | 61 | 14.1% | 30.8% |
| Marion County, KY | 60 | 16.4% | 32.1% |
| Mercer County, KY | 55 | 12.2% | 29.2% |
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 Boyle County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Boyle County's poverty rate was 14.8% in 2024, 82nd highest of 120 in Kentucky (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is McCreary County, at 36.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Boyle County ranks 71st of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Boyle 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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Legal Aid of the Bluegrass
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 Boyle County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.