About one in five people in Marshall County, Kentucky, has a disability
In Marshall County, 20.4% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 82% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Marshall County's score
In Marshall County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 70.8. Unemployment averaged 4.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 77% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 53.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Marshall 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.
Marshall County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (15.6%, fiscal year 2027) and people below the poverty line (10.7%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 70.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202677th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.0% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
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- 53.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.5% · August 202536th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people179.6 · 202569th percentile
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- 48.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202538th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.8% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.9% · second quarter of 202648th percentile
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- 47.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.7% · 202428th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.0% · 202433rd percentile
- People with a disability20.4% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance8.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,547 · 202439th percentile
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- 34.8 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 rent20.5% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Marshall 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 Marshall County, 22.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Marshall County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Marshall County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 31.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Marshall County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Marshall County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.1% in 2012 to 10.6% in 2013.
The share of households in Marshall County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 8.0% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Marshall County, Kentucky.
How Marshall County has changed
Marshall County's population rose by more than half to 31,734, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 24,966. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Marshall County, Kentucky.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Marshall County rose by about a quarter to 11,471, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 10,305. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Marshall County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.7% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.7% | 2024 10.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,100 | 2024 $70,547 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Marshall County's history
1842
1842, created from the northern half of Calloway County. Wikipedia
1951
A tornado in November 1951 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1964
A tornado in March 1964 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
A tornado in November 2005 did $8 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 31,659, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A tornado in December 2021 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Marshall County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Marshall County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Marshall County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Marshall County ranks 5th of the seven; Livingston County is highest, at 37.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trigg County, KY | 78 | 13.9% | 34.0% |
| Livingston County, KY | 78 | 13.0% | 37.5% |
| Calloway County, KY | 68 | 15.9% | 29.3% |
| Graves County, KY | 68 | 16.6% | 32.3% |
| McCracken County, KY | 66 | 13.9% | 23.7% |
| Lyon County, KY | 51 | 15.3% | 34.1% |
| Marshall County, KY | 51 | 10.7% | 31.2% |
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 Marshall County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Marshall County's poverty rate was 10.7% in 2024, 110th 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, Marshall County ranks 105th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Marshall 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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Kentucky 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 Marshall 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 Marshall County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.