About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Choctaw County, Mississippi, is not working
In Choctaw County, 32.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Choctaw County's score
In Choctaw County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 90.2. People with a car or retail loan behind: 12.4%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 84.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Choctaw 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.
Choctaw County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (6.9%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.3%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.2% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind12.4% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score55.0% · second quarter of 202689th percentile
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- 84.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.6% · 202488th percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.3% · 202487th percentile
- People with a disability22.8% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- People without health insurance10.6% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,406 · 202485th percentile
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- 83.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.9% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people346.2 · 202593rd percentile
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- 73.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202652nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working32.5% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
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- 26.3 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 rent6.9% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.3% · fiscal year 202746th 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 Choctaw 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 Choctaw County, 23.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Choctaw County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Choctaw County had its largest rise, from 19.6% in 1989 to 25.4% in 1994.
In Choctaw County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Choctaw County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Choctaw County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 20.1% in 2019 to 17.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Choctaw County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen to 13.6%
Low on the chart: 13.1% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Choctaw County, Mississippi.
How Choctaw County has changed
Choctaw County's population had its largest rise, from 8,410 in 1974 to 9,108 in 1979.
Choctaw County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 9,701 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Choctaw County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Choctaw County had its largest rise, from 1,776 in 2010 to 2,123 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Choctaw County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 1,776 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Choctaw County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.2% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.9% | 2024 20.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,770 | 2024 $53,406 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Choctaw County's history
1830
Choctaw people forced to cede lands and move west of Mississippi River under Indian Removal Act of 1830. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 14,357. The 2020 Census counted 8,246, 57% of the peak. Census Bureau
1963
A tornado in March 1963 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A tornado in April 2010 did $90 million in property damage and killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A thunderstorm in April 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1979
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Choctaw County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Choctaw County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Choctaw County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Choctaw County ranks 5th of the six; Montgomery County is highest, at 43.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, MS | 97 | 22.8% | 43.8% |
| Winston County, MS | 93 | 22.0% | 34.7% |
| Attala County, MS | 87 | 19.5% | 36.2% |
| Choctaw County, MS | 85 | 20.6% | 33.9% |
| Oktibbeha County, MS | 82 | 19.4% | 23.5% |
| Webster County, MS | 65 | 15.3% | 36.5% |
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 Choctaw County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Choctaw County's poverty rate was 20.6% in 2024, 34th 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, Choctaw County ranks 51st of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Choctaw 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 Choctaw 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 Choctaw County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.