In Kenton County, Kentucky, benefit checks make up only 16 cents of every dollar of income
In Kenton County, 15.6% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 59% of U.S. counties.
What drives Kenton County's score
In Kenton County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 68.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 20.2. About one in 21 people (4.7%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Kenton 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.
Even so, Kenton County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (230, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.6% · August 202555th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people230 · 202581st percentile
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- 54.8 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 rent19.3% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd percentile
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- 44.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202539th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.4% · second quarter of 202638th percentile
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- 35.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202643rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
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- 20.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.5% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability13.7% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
- People without health insurance4.7% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$82,787 · 202416th 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 Kenton 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 Kenton County, 15.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Kenton County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Kenton County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 15.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Kenton County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Kenton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.3% in 2011 to 11.2% in 2012.
The share of households in Kenton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 6.9% 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, Kenton County, Kentucky.
How Kenton County has changed
Kenton County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 168,444 in 2019 to 174,862 in 2024.
Kenton County's population rose 36% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1999 to 2004, reaching 153,138. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Kenton County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Kenton County had its largest rise in the last span, from 64,692 in 2020 to 75,385 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Kenton County nearly doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 75,385, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 64,692. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Kenton County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.1% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,171 | 2024 $82,787 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Kenton County's history
1840
Established on January 29, 1840, from land given by Campbell County; third most populous county in Kentucky. Wikipedia
1862
Stewart Iron Works operated as world's largest iron fence maker, later absorbed. Wikipedia
1981
A tornado in November 1981 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A flash flood in June 1996 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A flash flood in July 1996 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in March 2012 did $20 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 169,064, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1996
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Kenton County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Kenton County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Kenton County, in Kentucky and Ohio, three score higher. Of the group, Kenton County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Grant County gets the largest, at 29.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pendleton County, KY | 72 | 13.7% | 27.8% |
| Hamilton County, OH | 61 | 14.2% | 16.5% |
| Grant County, KY | 61 | 13.5% | 29.6% |
| Kenton County, KY | 40 | 9.8% | 15.6% |
| Campbell County, KY | 36 | 11.3% | 18.7% |
| 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 Kenton County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Kenton County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 112th 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, Kenton County ranks 111th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Kenton 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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Catholic Charities, Diocese of Covington
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid of the Bluegrass
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Kenton 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 Kenton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.