About one in 10 people in Rice County, Minnesota, has a disability
In Rice County, 10.5% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 82% of U.S. counties.
What drives Rice County's score
In Rice County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 42.6. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 15.9. About three in ten people (28.3%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Rice 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.
Rice 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.
- 42.6 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202664th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
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- 37.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.6% · August 202510th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people161.9 · 202563rd percentile
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- 36.4 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 rent19.0% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.5% · fiscal year 202717th percentile
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- 18.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.6% · 202427th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.3% · 202419th percentile
- People with a disability10.5% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance5.5% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,933 · 202415th percentile
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- 15.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.9% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202514th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.3% · second quarter of 20269th 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 Rice 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 Rice County, 16.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Rice County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Rice County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Rice County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Rice County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 4.6% in 2010 to 5.8% in 2011.
The share of households in Rice County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 7.9%
High on the chart: 8.2% in 2016. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Rice County, Minnesota.
How Rice County has changed
Rice County's population had its largest rise, from 56,082 in 1999 to 60,146 in 2004.
Rice County's population nearly doubled to 69,025, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 69,025 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Rice County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Rice County rose 37% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 26,450. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Rice County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.1% | 2024 10.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,962 | 2024 $83,933 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Rice County's history
1998
A tornado in March 1998 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A tornado in May 2001 did $9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Minnick's Food Market closed 2006 after 60+ years. Wikipedia
2006
Hail in August 2006 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 67,097, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A thunderstorm in April 2022 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Rice County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Rice County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Rice County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Rice County ranks 3rd of the eight; Steele County is highest, at 23.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steele County, MN | 24 | 8.3% | 23.0% |
| Rice County, MN | 17 | 10.6% | 21.1% |
| Dakota County, MN | 16 | 7.1% | 14.8% |
| Dodge County, MN | 16 | 7.4% | 18.8% |
| Waseca County, MN | 13 | 8.9% | 22.0% |
| Goodhue County, MN | 12 | 7.2% | 21.0% |
| Le Sueur County, MN | 10 | 7.4% | 19.8% |
| Scott County, MN | 7 | 5.3% | 10.8% |
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 Rice County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Rice County's poverty rate was 10.6% in 2024, 39th 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, Rice County ranks 45th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Rice 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 Rice County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.