In Copiah County, Mississippi, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Copiah County, 29.7% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Copiah County's score
In Copiah County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.9. Bankruptcy filings ran at 469.9 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 93.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Copiah 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.
Copiah County does better than most counties on one measure: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector38.4% · August 202591st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people469.9 · 202597th percentile
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- 93.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.6% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.2% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score58.2% · second quarter of 202694th percentile
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- 80.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.5% · 202485th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.9% · 202490th percentile
- People with a disability16.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- People without health insurance12.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,118 · 202488th percentile
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- 77.9 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 rent19.7% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.7% · fiscal year 202796th percentile
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- 64.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.0% · 2020 to 202489th 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 Copiah 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 Copiah County, 19.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Copiah County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Copiah County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 35.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Copiah County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Copiah County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 20.0% in 2015 to 22.9% in 2016.
The share of households in Copiah County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 14.6% 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, Copiah County, Mississippi.
How Copiah County has changed
Copiah County's population had its largest drop in the last span, from 28,417 in 2019 to 27,536 in 2024.
Copiah County's population rose 13% from 1969 to 2019, then turned down in 2024
High on the chart: 29,484 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Copiah County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Copiah County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 7,031 in 2015 to 6,236 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Copiah County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 7,696 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Copiah County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 29.5% | 2024 19.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,773 | 2024 $52,118 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Copiah County's history
1823
Organized in 1823 as Mississippi's 18th county. Wikipedia
1870
Crystal Springs developed as one of largest tomato shipping centers after commercial farming started 1870. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 35,914. The 2020 Census counted 28,368, 79% of the peak. Census Bureau
1969
A tornado in January 1969 killed 11 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in March 1976 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1978
A tornado in August 1978 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Copiah County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Copiah County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Copiah County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Copiah County ranks 4th of the seven; Claiborne County is highest, at 47.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claiborne County, MS | 98 | 33.3% | 47.1% |
| Hinds County, MS | 98 | 22.2% | 26.8% |
| Jefferson County, MS | 97 | 30.5% | 42.7% |
| Copiah County, MS | 96 | 19.5% | 35.8% |
| Lawrence County, MS | 88 | 19.9% | 39.0% |
| Simpson County, MS | 88 | 19.7% | 35.2% |
| Lincoln County, MS | 87 | 16.2% | 29.0% |
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 Copiah County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Copiah County's poverty rate was 19.5% in 2024, 46th 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, Copiah County ranks 19th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Copiah 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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Mississippi Center for 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 Copiah 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 Copiah County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.