In Fulton County, Kentucky, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2016
In 2024, 47 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Fulton County's score
In Fulton County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 92.9. About three in five people (60.4%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 81.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Fulton 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.
Fulton County does better than most counties on one measure: people without health insurance (5.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 92.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.2% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.0% · August 202592nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score60.4% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 81.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202678th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.8% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
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- 80.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.9% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.6% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability22.6% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- People without health insurance5.5% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$44,503 · 2024top 5%
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- 79.2 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 rent22.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.5% · fiscal year 202781st percentile
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- 78.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.4% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people157.8 · 202562nd 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 Fulton 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 Fulton County, 20.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Fulton County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Fulton County had its largest rise, from 29.2% in 2004 to 36.8% in 2009.
In Fulton County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Kentucky
In Fulton County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 47.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Fulton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 21.1% in 2021 to 24.5% in 2022.
The share of households in Fulton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 20.9% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Fulton County, Kentucky.
How Fulton County has changed
Fulton County's population fell 39% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1969 to 1974, reaching 9,205. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Fulton County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Fulton County had its largest rise, from 2,916 in 1990 to 3,717 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Fulton County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 39% since
High on the chart: 3,717 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Fulton County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.9% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.8% | 2024 23.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,804 | 2024 $44,503 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Fulton County's history
1845
Organized in 1845 from a portion of Hickman County. Wikipedia
1912
Levee broke, devastating flood. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 15,413. The 2020 Census counted 6,515, 42% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A flood in May 2011 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in March 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
A tornado in December 2021 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flash flood in August 2023 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Fulton County, 16 of them for flooding. FEMA
Fulton County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Fulton County, in Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Fulton County ranks 2nd of the six; Lake County is highest, at 51.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi County, MO | 98 | 21.0% | 40.7% |
| Lake County, TN | 97 | 31.2% | 51.4% |
| Fulton County, KY | 96 | 23.9% | 47.0% |
| New Madrid County, MO | 91 | 19.1% | 32.5% |
| Obion County, TN | 64 | 15.6% | 29.8% |
| Hickman County, KY | 59 | 18.9% | 35.3% |
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 Fulton County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Fulton County's poverty rate was 23.9% in 2024, 21st 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, Fulton County ranks 9th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Fulton 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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Kentucky Legal Aid
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 Fulton 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 Fulton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.