About one in five people in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, lives below the poverty line
In Vermilion Parish, 22.4% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Vermilion Parish's score
In Vermilion Parish, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 75.2. Late payments on loans come next, at 74.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Vermilion Parish: 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.
Vermilion Parish does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.7%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.9%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.4% · 202492nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line29.9% · 202491st percentile
- People with a disability17.9% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance7.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,082 · 202477th percentile
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- 74.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.1% · August 202585th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.2% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 74.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.9% · August 202581st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people170.2 · 202566th percentile
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- 65.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202649th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.0% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
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- 30.1 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 rent14.7% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th 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 Vermilion Parish 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 Vermilion Parish, 16.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Vermilion Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Vermilion Parish, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Vermilion Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 18.0% in 2010 to 14.4% in 2011.
The share of households in Vermilion Parish getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 17.9%, with its low point on the chart in 2011
Low on the chart: 14.4% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.
How Vermilion Parish has changed
Vermilion Parish's population had its largest rise, from 47,767 in 1979 to 51,931 in 1984.
Vermilion Parish's population rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 57,641
High on the chart: 58,655 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Vermilion Parish rose 13% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 13,918 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Vermilion Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.6% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.4% | 2024 22.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,911 | 2024 $57,082 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Vermilion Parish's history
1844
Created in 1844. Wikipedia
2005
Southern portion of Vermilion Parish swept away by water erosion, especially after Hurricane Katrina and Rita in 2005. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 57,999. The 2020 Census counted 57,359, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A flood in January 2013 did $27.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in August 2016 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flood in August 2016 did $75 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flood in August 2016 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
46 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Vermilion Parish, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Vermilion Parish beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Vermilion Parish, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Vermilion Parish ranks 4th of the six; Iberia Parish is highest, at 32.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iberia Parish, LA | 93 | 22.6% | 32.2% |
| Acadia Parish, LA | 85 | 20.9% | 32.0% |
| Vermilion Parish, LA | 73 | 22.4% | 28.2% |
| Jefferson Davis Parish, LA | 71 | 17.8% | 30.2% |
| Lafayette Parish, LA | 64 | 16.5% | 18.8% |
| Cameron Parish, LA | 38 | 12.9% | 16.0% |
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 Vermilion Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Vermilion Parish's poverty rate was 22.4% in 2024, 22nd highest of 64 in Louisiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is East Carroll Parish, at 44.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Vermilion Parish ranks 49th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Vermilion Parish
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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Acadiana Legal Service Corporation
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 Vermilion Parish · 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 Vermilion Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.