Unemployment in Marion County, Kentucky, is higher than in 82% of U.S. counties
In Marion County, 5.1% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 82% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Marion County's score
In Marion County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 76.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 237 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 83% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 75.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Marion 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.
Marion County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (3.1%, 2020 to 2024) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (10.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 76.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.5% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people237 · 202583rd percentile
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- 75.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202682nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.0% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
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- 61.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.6% · second quarter of 202665th percentile
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- 56.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.4% · 202472nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.5% · 202466th percentile
- People with a disability19.3% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- People without health insurance3.1% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$62,645 · 202462nd percentile
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- 14.6 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 rent10.1% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.4% · fiscal year 202716th 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 Marion 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 Marion County, 17.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Marion County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Marion County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 32.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Marion County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Marion County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 22.3% in 2018 to 18.3% in 2019.
The share of households in Marion County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 13.3% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Marion County, Kentucky.
How Marion County has changed
Marion County's population had its largest rise, from 16,786 in 1974 to 18,094 in 1979.
Marion County's population rose by about a fifth to 19,851, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 19,851 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Marion County, Kentucky.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Marion County more than doubled to 8,904, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 6,026. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Marion County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.6% | 2024 16.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,518 | 2024 $62,645 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Marion County's history
1863
Battle of Lebanon, July 5, 1863. Wikipedia
1995
Hail in May 1995 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 19,820. The 2020 Census counted 19,581, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2020
Diageo $130 million distillery opened Lebanon 2020. Wikipedia
2023
A flood in February 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Marion County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Marion County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Marion County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Marion County ranks 4th of the seven; Casey County is highest, at 42.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Casey County, KY | 89 | 18.8% | 42.3% |
| Taylor County, KY | 80 | 16.4% | 38.4% |
| Boyle County, KY | 72 | 14.8% | 28.5% |
| Larue County, KY | 67 | 14.1% | 32.3% |
| Washington County, KY | 61 | 14.1% | 30.8% |
| Marion County, KY | 60 | 16.4% | 32.1% |
| Nelson County, KY | 44 | 11.7% | 23.7% |
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 Marion County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Marion County's poverty rate was 16.4% in 2024, 63rd 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, Marion County ranks 95th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Marion 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 Society
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 Marion 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 Marion County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.