About one in five people in Carroll County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Carroll County, 21.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 86% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 69% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carroll County's score
In Carroll County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 75.4. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 71.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carroll 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.
Carroll County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (3.7%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.8% · 202469th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.9% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability21.6% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance9.6% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,737 · 202481st percentile
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- 71.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.8% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people220.2 · 202579th percentile
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- 71.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.0% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.0% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 68.4 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 202655th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.9% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
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- 20.7 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 rent3.7% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.5% · fiscal year 202736th 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 Carroll 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 Carroll County, 25.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carroll County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Carroll County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 33.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Carroll County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.0% in 2022 to 15.6% in 2023.
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2011, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 7.8% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Carroll County, Mississippi.
How Carroll County has changed
Carroll County's population rose most sharply after its 1989 low, from 9,264 in 1989 to 10,069 in 1994.
Carroll County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 10,682 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carroll County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Carroll County had its largest drop, from 1,177 in 2005 to 1,049 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Carroll County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 1,177 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carroll County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.6% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.7% | 2024 15.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,443 | 2024 $55,737 |
The table uses 4.2% 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 Carroll County's history
1857
Population relocated east to Vaiden to allow better access to railroad at former Choctaw town Shongalo, circa 1857. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 23,139. The 2020 Census counted 9,998, 43% of the peak. Census Bureau
1990
A tornado in December 1990 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A thunderstorm in February 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A thunderstorm in April 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A tornado in March 2023 did $5.44 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carroll County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Carroll County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Carroll County score higher than it does. Of the group, Carroll County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Holmes County gets the largest, at 54.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holmes County, MS | 100 | 34.3% | 54.4% |
| Leflore County, MS | 99 | 31.2% | 34.3% |
| Montgomery County, MS | 97 | 22.8% | 43.8% |
| Grenada County, MS | 92 | 19.4% | 37.4% |
| Attala County, MS | 87 | 19.5% | 36.2% |
| Carroll County, MS | 69 | 15.8% | 33.1% |
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 Carroll County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Carroll County's poverty rate was 15.8% in 2024, 70th 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, Carroll County ranks 71st of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carroll 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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North Mississippi Rural 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.
Download the CSV for Carroll County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
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 Carroll County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.