About one in 11 people in Mower County, Minnesota, lives below the poverty line
In Mower County, 9.2% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mower County's score
In Mower County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 56.2. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 27.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mower 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, Mower County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (25.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 56.2 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 rent25.1% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.4% · fiscal year 202725th percentile
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- 47.9 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 202657th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.9% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
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- 45.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.5% · August 202528th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people159.8 · 202563rd percentile
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- 35.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.2% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.9% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.4% · second quarter of 202631st percentile
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- 27.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.2% · 202416th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.3% · 202419th percentile
- People with a disability12.6% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- People without health insurance7.1% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,499 · 202439th 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 Mower 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 Mower County, 18.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mower County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Mower County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 26.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Mower County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mower County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.0% in 2011 to 10.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Mower County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 10.6%
Low on the chart: 6.7% 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, Mower County, Minnesota.
How Mower County has changed
Mower County's population had its largest drop, from 43,480 in 1974 to 41,287 in 1979.
Mower County's population fell 9% from 1969 to 2024, with its low point on the chart in 1989
Low on the chart: 37,466 in 1989. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mower County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Mower County rose 36% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 15,861. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mower County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.2% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.8% | 2024 9.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,471 | 2024 $70,499 |
The table uses 3.7% 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 Mower County's history
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 48,498. The 2020 Census counted 40,029, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in June 1998 did $3.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in June 2004 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mower County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mower County beside its neighbors
Mower County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in Minnesota and Iowa. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mower County ranks 2nd of the nine; Freeborn County is highest, at 28.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mower County, MN | 37 | 9.2% | 26.1% |
| Freeborn County, MN | 32 | 11.3% | 28.3% |
| Steele County, MN | 24 | 8.3% | 23.0% |
| Dodge County, MN | 16 | 7.4% | 18.8% |
| Olmsted County, MN | 7 | 6.8% | 16.1% |
| Fillmore County, MN | 6 | 8.1% | 25.6% |
| Worth County, IA | 3 | 10.0% | 23.3% |
| Mitchell County, IA | 1 | 10.4% | 13.9% |
| Howard County, IA | 1 | 9.7% | 20.7% |
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 Mower County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Mower County's poverty rate was 9.2% in 2024, 59th highest of 87 in Minnesota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Beltrami County, at 17.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Mower County ranks 9th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mower 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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Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
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 Mower County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.