Benefit checks make up 45 cents of every dollar of income in Metcalfe County, Kentucky
In Metcalfe County, 45.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Metcalfe County's score
In Metcalfe County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 78.5. About three in ten children (30.7%, 2024) live below the poverty line, a higher share than in 92% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 70.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Metcalfe 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.
Metcalfe County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.9%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (6.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.9% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.7% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability21.2% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,715 · 202488th percentile
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- 70.6 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 202659th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.1% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
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- 62.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.6% · second quarter of 202658th percentile
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- 62.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.8% · August 202559th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people162.2 · 202564th percentile
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- 40.5 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 rent13.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.1% · fiscal year 202754th 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 Metcalfe 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 Metcalfe County, 19.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Metcalfe County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Metcalfe County had its largest rise, from 29.6% in 2004 to 37.8% in 2009.
In Metcalfe County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 45.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Metcalfe County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 45.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Metcalfe County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 21.6% in 2013 to 26.2% in 2014.
The share of households in Metcalfe County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 12.3% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Metcalfe County, Kentucky.
How Metcalfe County has changed
Metcalfe County's population rose 29% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 10,064. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Metcalfe County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Metcalfe County had its largest rise in the last span, from 1,746 in 2020 to 2,087 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Metcalfe County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 2,701 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Metcalfe County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 26.1% | 2024 20.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,015 | 2024 $51,715 |
The table uses 4.7% 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 Metcalfe County's history
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 10,853. The 2020 Census counted 10,286, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
1965
A tornado in November 1965 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A tornado in March 1997 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A tornado in April 1998 did $5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Metcalfe County, 19 of them for flooding. FEMA
Metcalfe County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Metcalfe County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Metcalfe County ranks 2nd of the seven; Cumberland County is highest, at 47.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barren County, KY | 83 | 15.7% | 33.6% |
| Adair County, KY | 80 | 21.2% | 39.2% |
| Cumberland County, KY | 76 | 19.8% | 47.7% |
| Hart County, KY | 75 | 18.0% | 32.4% |
| Green County, KY | 75 | 17.9% | 42.8% |
| Metcalfe County, KY | 71 | 20.9% | 45.1% |
| Monroe County, KY | 63 | 20.0% | 39.3% |
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 Metcalfe County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Metcalfe County's poverty rate was 20.9% in 2024, 33rd 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, Metcalfe County ranks 74th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Metcalfe 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 Metcalfe 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 Metcalfe County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.