About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Winn Parish, Louisiana, is not working
In Winn Parish, 34.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives Winn Parish's score
In Winn Parish, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 86.8. Late payments on loans come next, at 85.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Winn 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.
Winn Parish does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (6.5%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.2%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202678th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working34.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
-
- 85.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.7% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score59.4% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
-
- 83.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.9% · August 202579th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people272.4 · 202587th percentile
-
- 78.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.7% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line29.4% · 202491st percentile
- People with a disability20.4% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,087 · 202486th percentile
-
- 51.8 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 rent19.7% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.2% · fiscal year 202744th percentile
-
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 Winn 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 Winn Parish, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Winn Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Winn Parish, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 32.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Winn Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Winn Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 16.0% in 2023 to 18.4% in 2024.
The share of households in Winn Parish getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 18.4%, with its low point on the chart in 2019
Low on the chart: 15.6% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Winn Parish, Louisiana.
How Winn Parish has changed
Winn Parish's population had its largest drop, from 17,079 in 1999 to 15,908 in 2004.
Winn Parish's population fell 18% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 17,457 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Winn Parish, Louisiana.
The number of jobs located in Winn Parish had its largest rise, from 4,398 in 1990 to 4,982 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Winn Parish was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 5,137 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Winn Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 27.6% | 2024 23.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,682 | 2024 $53,087 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Winn Parish's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 18,357. The 2020 Census counted 13,755, 75% of the peak. Census Bureau
1953
A tornado in March 1953 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1960
Cary Salt Works used in Project Coyboy Plowshare Program, Cowboy Event 1959-1960. Wikipedia
1983
A tornado in May 1983 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A tornado in May 2009 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flood in April 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1983
33 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Winn Parish, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Winn Parish beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Winn Parish, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Winn Parish ranks 6th of the seven; Bienville Parish is highest, at 41.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natchitoches Parish, LA | 97 | 26.9% | 29.9% |
| Bienville Parish, LA | 95 | 25.8% | 41.9% |
| Caldwell Parish, LA | 95 | 21.8% | 40.2% |
| Winn Parish, LA | 92 | 23.7% | 32.8% |
| Jackson Parish, LA | 84 | 17.8% | 36.3% |
| Grant Parish, LA | 79 | 21.1% | 33.7% |
| LaSalle Parish, LA | 52 | 18.0% | 35.7% |
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 Winn Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Winn Parish's poverty rate was 23.7% in 2024, 16th 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, Winn Parish ranks 27th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Winn 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.
-
Acadiana Legal Service Corporation
Legal aid
-
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 Winn Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.