About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Chippewa County, Michigan, have a job
In Chippewa County, 13.9% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chippewa County's score
In Chippewa County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 54.6. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 24.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 44.1 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chippewa 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.
Even so, Chippewa County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (6.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 54.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.4% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability17.5% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,705 · 202465th percentile
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- 53.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202695th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.9% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
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- 46.3 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 rent17.6% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.3% · fiscal year 202745th percentile
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- 29.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.3% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.7% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.2% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 24.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.7% · August 202540th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people44.1 · 20257th 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 Chippewa 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 Chippewa County, 19.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chippewa County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Chippewa County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 31.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Chippewa County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chippewa County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (11.6% in 2009) to 14.8% in 2010.
The share of households in Chippewa County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 11.6% 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, Chippewa County, Michigan.
How Chippewa County has changed
Chippewa County's population had its largest drop, from 36,144 in 1974 to 30,215 in 1979.
Chippewa County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 7% since
High on the chart: 39,174 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chippewa County, Michigan.
The number of jobs located in Chippewa County rose most sharply from its first year (10,665 in 1990) to 13,819 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Chippewa County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 14,514 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chippewa County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.3% | 2025 7.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.4% | 2024 14.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,237 | 2024 $61,705 |
The table uses 7.1% for 2025; the score uses 6.4% 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 Chippewa County's history
1826
Chippewa County created December 22, 1826, organized in 1826. Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 38,543. The 2020 Census counted 36,785, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chippewa County. FEMA
Chippewa County beside its neighbors
All two counties that border Chippewa County score higher than it does. Of the group, Chippewa County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Luce County gets the largest, at 44.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luce County, MI | 62 | 19.4% | 44.5% |
| Mackinac County, MI | 39 | 12.0% | 32.0% |
| Chippewa County, MI | 35 | 14.4% | 31.4% |
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 Chippewa County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Chippewa County's poverty rate was 14.4% in 2024, 27th 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, Chippewa County ranks 61st of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chippewa 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 Services of Northern Michigan
Legal aid
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Michigan Legal Help
Legal help website
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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 Chippewa 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 Chippewa County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.