About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Franklin County, Mississippi, is not working
In Franklin County, 35.2% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Franklin County's score
In Franklin County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 88.3. People with a credit card behind: 10.5%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 81.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Franklin 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.
Franklin County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.4%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (17.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.5% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.2% · second quarter of 202689th percentile
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- 81.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202668th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working35.2% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 79.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.5% · August 202565th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people315.4 · 202592nd percentile
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- 78.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.8% · 202483rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.2% · 202484th percentile
- People with a disability20.1% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance9.1% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,267 · 202485th percentile
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- 47.7 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 rent17.9% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.4% · 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 Franklin 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 Franklin County, 21.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Franklin County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Franklin County rose most from 22.3% in 1984 to 30.1% in 1994, 3.9 points each step.
In Franklin County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 38.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Franklin County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Franklin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 12.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Franklin County, Mississippi.
How Franklin County has changed
Franklin County's population made its largest gain on the way to its 1984 high, from 8,118 in 1979 to 8,608 in 1984.
Franklin County's population fell 8% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 8,608 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Franklin County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Franklin County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 1,688 in 2015 to 1,491 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Franklin County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 1,844 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Franklin County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.3% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.3% | 2024 18.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,268 | 2024 $53,267 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Franklin County's history
1809
Franklin County was formed on December 21, 1809, from portions of Adams County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 15,193. The 2020 Census counted 7,675, 51% of the peak. Census Bureau
1983
A tornado in April 1983 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in February 2008 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in September 2008 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A tornado in December 2024 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Franklin County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Franklin County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Franklin County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Franklin County ranks 3rd of the six; Wilkinson County is highest, at 43.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilkinson County, MS | 99 | 31.6% | 43.4% |
| Adams County, MS | 98 | 24.0% | 35.6% |
| Jefferson County, MS | 97 | 30.5% | 42.7% |
| Amite County, MS | 91 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| Franklin County, MS | 90 | 18.8% | 38.1% |
| 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 Franklin County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Franklin County's poverty rate was 18.8% in 2024, 52nd 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, Franklin County ranks 39th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Franklin 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 Franklin 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 Franklin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.