Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Calhoun County, Mississippi
In Calhoun County, 39.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks (Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024). That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Calhoun County's score
In Calhoun County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 85.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 449.3 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 85.2.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Calhoun County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, 12-month average (3.2%, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.2%, 2020 to 2024).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Calhoun County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 85.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.6% · August 202575th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people449.3 · 202595th percentile
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- 85.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line24.2% · 202479th percentile
- People with a disability22.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$46,890 · 202495th percentile
- People below the poverty line18.6% · 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance12.0% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 82.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a credit card behind8.5% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.1% · Q4 202582nd percentile
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- 48.2 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.4% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.2% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202620th percentile
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- 47.8 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.2% · fiscal year 202772nd percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Calhoun County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Calhoun County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Calhoun County in 2024, pay from work was 48 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 12 cents. Benefit checks were 40 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 14 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Calhoun County, benefit checks rose from 14 to 40 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Calhoun County, Mississippi: 39.8% and 48.1% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 39.8% of all personal income in Calhoun County, Mississippi (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Calhoun County, 20.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Calhoun County has changed
The number of people living in Calhoun County fell by about one in 10 between 1969 and 2024, from 14,806 to 12,754. The number of jobs located there fell by about three in 10 from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 8.7% in 1990 to 3.5% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 14,806 | 2024 12,754 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 4,105 | 2024 2,905 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.7% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.4% | 2024 18.6% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $16,957 | 2024 $46,890 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 14.4% | 2024 39.8% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Calhoun County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 20,893. The 2020 Census counted 13,266, 63% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Calhoun County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Calhoun County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Calhoun County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Calhoun County ranks 3rd of the seven; Yalobusha County is highest, at 43.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chickasaw County, MS | 93 | 23.1% | 39.9% |
| Grenada County, MS | 92 | 19.4% | 37.4% |
| Yalobusha County, MS | 88 | 18.7% | 43.7% |
| Calhoun County, MS | 83 | 18.6% | 39.8% |
| Pontotoc County, MS | 69 | 14.9% | 27.0% |
| Webster County, MS | 66 | 15.3% | 36.5% |
| Lafayette County, MS | 55 | 17.9% | 19.0% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Calhoun County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Calhoun County's poverty rate was 18.6% in 2024, 56th highest of 82 in Mississippi (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Issaquena County, at 55.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Calhoun County ranks 58th of 82 in the state.
Calhoun County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Calhoun County, Mississippi?
18.6% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in five people. Among children it was 24.2%.
Is Calhoun County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Calhoun County's poverty rate was 18.6% in 2024, 56th highest of 82 in Mississippi (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Issaquena County, at 55.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Calhoun County ranks 58th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Calhoun County, Mississippi?
About 12,754 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 13,266, 63% of the county's peak of 20,893 in 1940.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Calhoun County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Mississippi Center for Legal Services
Legal aid
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North Mississippi Rural Legal Services
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,311 approved agencies 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 Calhoun County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Calhoun County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.