About one in 12 people in Allegan County, Michigan, lives below the poverty line
In Allegan County, 8.2% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Allegan County's score
In Allegan County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 46.4. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 12.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Allegan 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.
Allegan County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 46.4 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202652nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.1% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
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- 39.2 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 rent18.8% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.3% · fiscal year 202724th percentile
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- 29.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.4% · August 202523rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people98.4 · 202535th percentile
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- 22.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.6% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.1% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.0% · second quarter of 202612th percentile
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- 12.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.2% · 20249th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.5% · 202410th percentile
- People with a disability11.6% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$85,080 · 202414th 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 Allegan 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 Allegan County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Allegan County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Allegan County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 19.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Allegan County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Allegan County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 9.2% in 2009 to 10.9% in 2010; 10.6% in 2016 to 8.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Allegan County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 7.8%
Low on the chart: 6.5% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Allegan County, Michigan.
How Allegan County has changed
Allegan County's population had its largest rise, from 63,641 in 1969 to 72,423 in 1974.
Allegan County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 122,429, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 111,252. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Allegan County, Michigan.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Allegan County nearly doubled to 43,686, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 33,959. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Allegan County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.9% | 2024 8.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,536 | 2024 $85,080 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Allegan County's history
1831
Established 1831 organized 1835. Wikipedia
1914
Cornelian automobile venture short-lived, less than 100 produced. Wikipedia
1965
A tornado in April 1965 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1983
A tornado in July 1983 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in June 2008 did $2 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flood in April 2013 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 120,502, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Allegan County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Allegan County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Allegan County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Allegan County ranks 2nd of the six; Van Buren County is highest, at 27.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Van Buren County, MI | 49 | 13.6% | 27.7% |
| Kalamazoo County, MI | 42 | 11.6% | 18.9% |
| Kent County, MI | 29 | 9.2% | 14.8% |
| Barry County, MI | 26 | 9.0% | 19.6% |
| Allegan County, MI | 16 | 8.2% | 19.7% |
| Ottawa County, MI | 13 | 8.8% | 15.8% |
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 Allegan County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Allegan County's poverty rate was 8.2% in 2024, 79th highest of 83 in Michigan (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lake County, at 24.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Allegan County ranks 78th of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Allegan 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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Legal Aid of Western Michigan
Legal aid
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Counsel & Advocacy Law Line (Lakeshore 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 Allegan 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 Allegan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.