Unemployment in McCracken County, Kentucky, is higher than in 61% of U.S. counties
In McCracken County, 4.3% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 61% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives McCracken County's score
In McCracken County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 68.9. People with a car or retail loan behind: 7.8%, August 2025, higher than in 81% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 65.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McCracken 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.
McCracken County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (5.9%, 2020 to 2024) and adults 25 to 54 not working (20.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.8% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.8% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.5% · second quarter of 202668th percentile
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- 65.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.1% · August 202560th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people180.9 · 202570th percentile
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- 58.4 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 rent20.0% · 2020 to 202461st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202755th percentile
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- 54.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202660th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.5% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
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- 50.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.9% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.9% · 202454th percentile
- People with a disability16.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- People without health insurance5.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,076 · 202457th 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 McCracken 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 McCracken County, 20.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McCracken County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in McCracken County had its largest rise, from 19.1% in 2004 to 23.3% in 2009.
In McCracken County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 23.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In McCracken County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in McCracken County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 13.5% in 2018 to 11.8% in 2019.
The share of households in McCracken County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 10.0%
Low on the chart: 9.7% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, McCracken County, Kentucky.
How McCracken County has changed
McCracken County's population had its largest rise, from 62,271 in 1989 to 65,160 in 1994.
McCracken County's population rose 16% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 67,677 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McCracken County, Kentucky.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in McCracken County rose 30% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 40,975. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McCracken County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.8% | 2024 13.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,265 | 2024 $64,076 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 McCracken County's history
1862
General Order No. 11 December 17, 1862 forced 30 Jewish families to leave Paducah. Wikipedia
1864
Battle of Paducah, March 25, 1864. Wikipedia
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in March 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in May 2011 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in March 2019 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 67,875, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McCracken County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
McCracken County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border McCracken County, in Kentucky and Illinois, three score higher. Of the group, McCracken County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Pulaski County gets the largest, at 45.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pulaski County, IL | 84 | 21.7% | 45.8% |
| Livingston County, KY | 78 | 13.0% | 37.5% |
| Graves County, KY | 68 | 16.6% | 32.3% |
| McCracken County, KY | 66 | 13.9% | 23.7% |
| Ballard County, KY | 64 | 15.9% | 29.1% |
| Carlisle County, KY | 54 | 13.9% | 26.1% |
| Marshall County, KY | 51 | 10.7% | 31.2% |
| Massac County, IL | 42 | 15.2% | 36.2% |
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 McCracken County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, McCracken County's poverty rate was 13.9% in 2024, 91st 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, McCracken County ranks 85th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McCracken 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, Incorporated
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 McCracken 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 McCracken County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.