Unemployment in Laurel County, Kentucky, is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties
In Laurel County, 5.5% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Laurel County's score
In Laurel County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 90.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 431.3 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 86.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Laurel 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.
Laurel County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.6%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (7.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.8% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people431.3 · 202597th percentile
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- 86.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202688th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.0% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
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- 78.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.9% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.1% · second quarter of 202680th percentile
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- 75.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.8% · 202479th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.4% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability21.1% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,404 · 202483rd percentile
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- 46.1 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 rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.8% · fiscal year 202751st 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 Laurel 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 Laurel County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Laurel County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Laurel County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 35.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Laurel County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Laurel County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 19.4% in 2012 to 21.6% in 2013.
The share of households in Laurel County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 14.2% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Laurel County, Kentucky.
How Laurel County has changed
Laurel County's population had its largest rise, from 30,833 in 1974 to 37,733 in 1979.
Laurel County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 63,353, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 63,353. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Laurel County, Kentucky.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Laurel County nearly doubled to 26,104, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 18,709. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Laurel County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 5.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.8% | 2024 17.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,117 | 2024 $54,404 |
The table uses 5.6% for 2025; the score uses 5.5% 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 Laurel County's history
1825
Established December 21, 1825, the 80th county organized in Kentucky, from parts of Rockcastle, Clay, Knox and Whitley Counties. Wikipedia
2001
A tornado in June 2001 did $17.14 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Hail in May 2002 did $30 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in March 2012 did $5 million in property damage and killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 62,613, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
A tornado in May 2025 killed 17 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Laurel County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Laurel County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Laurel County, six score higher. Of the group, Laurel County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; McCreary County gets the largest, at 58.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knox County, KY | 99 | 30.7% | 49.2% |
| McCreary County, KY | 99 | 36.4% | 58.2% |
| Clay County, KY | 98 | 33.6% | 56.5% |
| Jackson County, KY | 94 | 22.0% | 44.0% |
| Rockcastle County, KY | 94 | 21.8% | 43.3% |
| Whitley County, KY | 92 | 25.5% | 47.6% |
| Laurel County, KY | 90 | 17.8% | 35.7% |
| Pulaski County, KY | 83 | 20.1% | 42.1% |
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 Laurel County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Laurel County's poverty rate was 17.8% in 2024, 51st 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, Laurel County ranks 30th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Laurel 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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AppalReD 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 Laurel 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 Laurel County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.