In Pike County, Kentucky, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2020
In 2024, 45 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pike County's score
In Pike County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 96.1. About two in five adults aged 25 to 54 (38.0%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 97% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 85.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pike 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.
Pike County does better than most counties on one measure: people without health insurance (4.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 96.1 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202694th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working38.0% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
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- 85.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people457.4 · 202597th percentile
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- 77.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.5% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score54.5% · second quarter of 202688th percentile
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- 74.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.4% · 202492nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.7% · 202474th percentile
- People with a disability29.8% · 2020 to 202499th percentile
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$46,499 · 202495th percentile
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- 72.3 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 rent18.2% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.3% · fiscal year 202794th 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 Pike 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 Pike County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pike County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Pike County rose most in two steps: 20.1% in 1989 to 25.2% in 1994; 28.5% in 1999 to 33.6% in 2004.
In Pike County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Kentucky
In Pike County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 44.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pike County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 21.1% in 2019 to 19.0% in 2020.
The share of households in Pike 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: 18.9% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pike County, Kentucky.
How Pike County has changed
Pike County's population had its largest rise, from 68,432 in 1974 to 80,283 in 1979.
Pike County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 80,460 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pike County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Pike County had its largest rise, from 21,120 in 1990 to 23,843 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Pike County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 24,099 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pike County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 6.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.6% | 2024 22.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,256 | 2024 $46,499 |
The table uses 6.2% for 2025; the score uses 6.3% 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 Pike County's history
1821
December 19, 1821, from a portion of Floyd County. Wikipedia
1860
Hatfield-McCoy feud in Pike County and Mingo County West Virginia 1860-1891. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 81,154. The 2020 Census counted 58,669, 72% of the peak. Census Bureau
2001
A flash flood in August 2001 did $6 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in June 2003 did $2.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flash flood in July 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A thunderstorm in August 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
43 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pike County, 36 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pike County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Pike County, in Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pike County ranks 7th of the eight; Martin County is highest, at 60.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Floyd County, KY | 97 | 27.7% | 50.9% |
| Mingo County, WV | 96 | 25.7% | 46.1% |
| Buchanan County, VA | 96 | 23.5% | 44.5% |
| Pike County, KY | 95 | 22.4% | 44.9% |
| Martin County, KY | 95 | 33.8% | 60.9% |
| Knott County, KY | 93 | 25.9% | 54.2% |
| Letcher County, KY | 86 | 25.3% | 57.8% |
| Wise County, VA | 85 | 19.5% | — |
| Dickenson County, VA | 72 | 19.9% | 47.2% |
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 Pike County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Pike County's poverty rate was 22.4% in 2024, 25th 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, Pike County ranks 10th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pike 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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AppalReD 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.
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 Pike County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.