Unemployment in Mason County, Kentucky, is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties
In Mason County, 5.6% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 82% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mason County's score
In Mason County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 88.1. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mason 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.
Mason County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (4.4%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (4.3%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.1 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202689th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.8% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
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- 76.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.9% · August 202570th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people225.6 · 202581st percentile
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- 62.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.3% · August 202528th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.7% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 62.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.2% · 202466th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.4% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability22.1% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance4.4% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,252 · 202472nd percentile
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- 58.3 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 rent21.7% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.3% · fiscal year 202745th 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 Mason 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 Mason County, 19.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mason County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Mason County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 31.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Mason County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mason County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 19.6% in 2016 to 16.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Mason County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2019, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 15.1% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Mason County, Kentucky.
How Mason County has changed
Mason County's population fell most sharply on the way to its 1989 low, from 17,449 in 1984 to 16,665 in 1989.
Mason County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 18,025 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mason County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Mason County rose most sharply from its first year (7,674 in 1990) to 9,308 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Mason County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 9,487 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mason County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 6.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.2% | 2024 15.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,003 | 2024 $59,252 |
The table uses 6.0% for 2025; the score uses 5.6% 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 Mason County's history
1788
1788, created from Bourbon County, Virginia. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 20,446. The 2020 Census counted 17,120, 84% of the peak. Census Bureau
1981
A tornado in June 1981 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A flash flood in March 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
A flash flood in February 2000 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mason County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mason County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Mason County, in Kentucky and Ohio, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mason County ranks 6th of the seven; Lewis County is highest, at 43.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams County, OH | 88 | 17.4% | 36.3% |
| Mason County, KY | 82 | 15.2% | 31.4% |
| Lewis County, KY | 82 | 22.2% | 43.8% |
| Bracken County, KY | 81 | 13.8% | 33.4% |
| Robertson County, KY | 75 | 17.3% | 40.6% |
| Fleming County, KY | 74 | 16.5% | 34.5% |
| Brown County, OH | 68 | 15.2% | 30.3% |
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 Mason County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Mason County's poverty rate was 15.2% in 2024, 79th 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, Mason County ranks 40th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mason 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 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.
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 Mason County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.