In Gallatin County, Kentucky, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Gallatin County, 25.6% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Gallatin County's score
In Gallatin County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 89.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 409.5 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 73.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Gallatin 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.
Gallatin County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.3%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (5.1%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.7% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people409.5 · 2025top 5%
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- 73.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.8% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.8% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 62.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.0% · 2020 to 202463rd 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 line12.6% · 202445th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.3% · 202450th percentile
- People with a disability17.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,617 · 202447th percentile
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- 51.0 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 rent11.3% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.6% · fiscal year 202785th 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 Gallatin 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 Gallatin County, 15.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Gallatin County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Gallatin County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Gallatin County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Gallatin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 16.0% in 2010 to 13.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Gallatin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 9.5% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Gallatin County, Kentucky.
How Gallatin County has changed
Gallatin County's population had its largest rise, from 6,224 in 1994 to 7,874 in 1999.
Gallatin County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8,805, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 8,588. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Gallatin County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Gallatin County had its largest rise, from 1,428 in 1995 to 2,134 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Gallatin County tripled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,526
High on the chart: 2,688 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Gallatin County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 12.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,352 | 2024 $67,617 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.4% 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 Gallatin County's history
1798
Formed on December 14, 1798, from parts of Franklin and Shelby counties. Wikipedia
1868
December 4, 1868 steamboat collision of America and United States on Ohio River with 162 deaths. Wikipedia
1956
Markland Locks and Dam constructed 1956-1964 with 1967 hydroelectric power plant providing jobs. Wikipedia
1991
A thunderstorm in August 1991 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A flash flood in March 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 8,690, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1996
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Gallatin County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Gallatin County beside its neighbors
Gallatin County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Kentucky and Indiana. For the share of income from benefit checks, Gallatin County ranks 5th of the six; Owen County is highest, at 33.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gallatin County, KY | 76 | 12.6% | 27.8% |
| Carroll County, KY | 75 | 17.3% | 30.0% |
| Switzerland County, IN | 61 | 14.3% | 28.3% |
| Grant County, KY | 61 | 13.5% | 29.6% |
| Owen County, KY | 58 | 13.9% | 33.3% |
| Boone County, KY | 23 | 7.5% | 16.0% |
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 Gallatin County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Gallatin County's poverty rate was 12.6% in 2024, 102nd 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, Gallatin County ranks 57th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Gallatin 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.
Download the CSV for Gallatin 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 Gallatin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.