About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Lincoln County, Kentucky, are not working
In Lincoln County, 29.7% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 77% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lincoln County's score
In Lincoln County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 84.9. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 78.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lincoln 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.
Lincoln County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.6%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.9 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202680th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.7% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
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- 78.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.0% · August 202576th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people222 · 202580th percentile
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- 71.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.3% · 202477th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.1% · 202468th percentile
- People with a disability19.4% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,345 · 202483rd percentile
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- 62.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.5% · second quarter of 202678th percentile
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- 34.1 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 rent13.6% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.1% · fiscal year 202742nd 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County, 18.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lincoln County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lincoln County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 37.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Lincoln County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 21.7% in 2017 to 18.6% in 2018.
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 15.5% 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, Lincoln County, Kentucky.
How Lincoln County has changed
Lincoln County's population rose by about half to 24,910, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 21,368. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lincoln County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County rose most sharply from its first year (2,389 in 1990) to 3,254 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 4,415 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lincoln County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.1% | 2025 5.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.2% | 2024 17.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,767 | 2024 $54,345 |
The table uses 5.4% for 2025; the score uses 5.0% 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 Lincoln County's history
1780
Established by Virginia General Assembly in June 1780; one of Kentucky's nine original counties formed from Virginia's Kentucky County. Wikipedia
1996
A tornado in April 1996 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 24,742. The 2020 Census counted 24,275, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A flash flood in May 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lincoln County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lincoln County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Lincoln County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lincoln County ranks 4th of the six; Rockcastle County is highest, at 43.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rockcastle County, KY | 94 | 21.8% | 43.3% |
| Casey County, KY | 89 | 18.8% | 42.3% |
| Pulaski County, KY | 83 | 20.1% | 42.1% |
| Lincoln County, KY | 77 | 17.3% | 37.5% |
| Boyle County, KY | 72 | 14.8% | 28.5% |
| Garrard County, KY | 62 | 14.3% | 30.0% |
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 Lincoln County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Lincoln County's poverty rate was 17.3% in 2024, 55th 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, Lincoln County ranks 56th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lincoln 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.