McCreary County, Kentucky

County Distress Index: Serious · 72.9 | 17,050 people · 2nd most distressed in Kentucky
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McCreary County, KY shows significant household financial distress with a score of 72.9 — 105th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Kentucky, it ranks 2nd of 120 counties. It scores higher than all 6 of its neighboring counties.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. McCreary County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 95.0 — worse than roughly 95% of U.S. counties.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 95.0
Poverty Rate 95
Income vs. State Median 95
Child Poverty Rate 95
Debt & Delinquency 88.8
Debt in Collections 85
Medical Debt 77
Student Loan Delinquency 94
Auto Loan Delinquency 88
Credit Card Delinquency 95
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 93
Community Vulnerability 73.3
Uninsured Rate 52
Disability Rate 94
Employment & Wages 64.0
Unemployment Rate 74
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 23
Business Formation Rate 95
Housing Cost Burden 43.5
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 19
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 37
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 18
Homeownership Rate 50
Rent-to-Income Ratio 93

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How McCreary County compares to its 6 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. McCreary County
McCreary County, KY 72.9 Serious —
Wayne County, KY 72.2 Serious -0.7
Campbell County, TN 70.9 Serious -2.0
Scott County, TN 69.2 Serious -3.8
Whitley County, KY 67.7 Serious -5.2
Laurel County, KY 60.8 Elevated -12.1
Pulaski County, KY 57.4 Elevated -15.5

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. McCreary County
Concordia Parish, LA 72.8 Serious -0.1
Jackson County, FL 73.0 Serious +0.1
Dillon County, SC 72.8 Serious -0.1
Martinsville city, VA 72.8 Serious -0.1
Lee County, VA 73.2 Serious +0.3

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for McCreary County as a CSV file.

Find Help in McCreary County

Find an Attorney

Kentucky Bar Association Lawyer Referral offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Kentucky Bar Association Lawyer Referral 502-564-3795

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving McCreary County residents at no cost.

Legal Aid of the Bluegrass 1-800-928-4615
Kentucky Legal Aid 1-866-452-9243
Appalachian Research and Defense Fund of Kentucky (866) 277-5733
Legal Aid Society (502) 584-1254

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for McCreary County, Kentucky?

    McCreary County has a County Distress Index score of 72.9 out of 100, placing it in the Serious zone. It ranks 105th nationally out of 3,144 counties and 2nd in Kentucky out of 120 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in McCreary County?

    The primary driver of distress in McCreary County is Income & Poverty, where the county scores 95.0 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Poverty Rate, Income vs. State Median, Child Poverty Rate.

  • How does McCreary County compare to neighboring counties?

    McCreary County (72.9) can be compared to its 6 neighboring counties: Wayne County, KY (72.2); Campbell County, TN (70.9); Scott County, TN (69.2).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of McCreary County?

    McCreary County, Kentucky has a population of approximately 17,050 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a small county.