About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Ionia County, Michigan, have a job
In Ionia County, 8.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ionia County's score
In Ionia County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 53.8. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 26.4. About one in nine children (11.6%, 2024) lives below the poverty line, a lower share than in 79% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ionia 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.
Ionia 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.
- 53.8 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent21.3% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202738th percentile
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- 47.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.1% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.9% · August 202545th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.6% · second quarter of 202635th percentile
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- 38.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.3% · August 202543rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people96.6 · 202534th percentile
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- 31.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working8.4% · 2020 to 20241st percentile
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- 26.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.5% · 202426th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability14.4% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- People without health insurance5.2% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,362 · 202428th 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 Ionia 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 Ionia County, 15.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ionia County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Ionia County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Ionia County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ionia County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.8% in 2010 to 15.8% in 2011.
The share of households in Ionia County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 11.3% 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, Ionia County, Michigan.
How Ionia County has changed
Ionia County's population had its largest rise, from 52,433 in 1984 to 56,886 in 1989.
Ionia County's population rose 44% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 66,690 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ionia County, Michigan.
The number of jobs located in Ionia County made its largest gain on the way to its 2015 high, from 17,514 in 2010 to 19,510 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Ionia County rose by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 18,832
High on the chart: 19,510 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ionia County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.9% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.2% | 2024 10.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,689 | 2024 $75,362 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Ionia County's history
1831
March 2, 1831 (created) 1837 (organized). Wikipedia
2011
Hail in April 2011 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flood in April 2013 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A tornado in June 2015 did $3.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 66,804, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A thunderstorm in August 2023 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ionia County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ionia County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Ionia County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ionia County ranks 2nd of the six; Montcalm County is highest, at 29.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montcalm County, MI | 49 | 14.2% | 29.9% |
| Ionia County, MI | 31 | 10.5% | 25.2% |
| Eaton County, MI | 31 | 8.2% | 23.4% |
| Kent County, MI | 29 | 9.2% | 14.8% |
| Barry County, MI | 26 | 9.0% | 19.6% |
| Clinton County, MI | 11 | 8.4% | 16.9% |
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 Ionia County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Ionia County's poverty rate was 10.5% in 2024, 65th 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, Ionia County ranks 64th of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ionia 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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Michigan State University Extension - Ionia
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
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 Ionia County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.