About one in 19 people in Scott County, Minnesota, lives below the poverty line
In Scott County, 5.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives Scott County's score
In Scott County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 46.2. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 2.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Scott 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, Scott County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 46.2 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 rent23.0% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
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- 36.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector9.9% · August 20253rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people175.2 · 202568th percentile
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- 26.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202648th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.5% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
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- 3.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.3% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.9% · August 20254th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score22.8% · second quarter of 20261st percentile
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- 2.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line5.3% · 20240th percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.5% · 20241st percentile
- People with a disability8.4% · 2020 to 20241st percentile
- People without health insurance3.7% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$121,666 · 20241st 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 Scott 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 Scott County, 12.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Scott County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Scott County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 10.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about seven times as much as benefit checks
In Scott County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 10.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 3.7% in 2013 to 4.5% in 2014.
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 4.5%
Low on the chart: 2.1% 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, Scott County, Minnesota.
How Scott County has changed
Scott County's population had its largest rise, from 85,094 in 1999 to 112,605 in 2004.
Scott County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 157,206, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 47,187. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Scott County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Scott County more than tripled to 63,836, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 63,836. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Scott County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.9% | 2024 5.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $39,457 | 2024 $121,666 |
The table uses 3.4% 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 Scott County's history
1998
A thunderstorm in May 1998 did $170 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in May 1998 did $17.6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Hail in August 2006 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flood in June 2014 did $9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 150,928, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Scott County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Scott County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Scott County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Scott County ranks 6th of the seven; Sibley County is highest, at 22.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hennepin County, MN | 24 | 9.5% | 12.9% |
| Rice County, MN | 17 | 10.6% | 21.1% |
| Dakota County, MN | 16 | 7.1% | 14.8% |
| Sibley County, MN | 13 | 8.1% | 22.0% |
| Le Sueur County, MN | 10 | 7.4% | 19.8% |
| Scott County, MN | 7 | 5.3% | 10.8% |
| Carver County, MN | 2 | 4.7% | 10.0% |
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 Scott County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Scott County's poverty rate was 5.3% in 2024, 85th 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, Scott County ranks 75th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Scott 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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Scott County Community Development Agency
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Scott County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.