About one in five people in Lauderdale County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Lauderdale County, 20.0% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 87% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 91% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lauderdale County's score
In Lauderdale County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 92.0. People with a car or retail loan behind: 10.6%, August 2025, higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 83.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lauderdale 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.
Lauderdale 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.
- 92.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.6% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score54.6% · second quarter of 202688th percentile
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- 83.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.4% · August 202580th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people265.1 · 202586th percentile
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- 77.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.0% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.3% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability18.1% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- People without health insurance9.6% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,828 · 202478th percentile
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- 73.9 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 rent27.0% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202755th percentile
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- 55.6 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 working24.3% · 2020 to 202470th 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 Lauderdale 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 Lauderdale County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lauderdale County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lauderdale County had its largest rise, from 21.9% in 2004 to 25.3% in 2009.
In Lauderdale County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 29.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Lauderdale County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lauderdale County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 18.1% in 2012 to 20.0% in 2013.
The share of households in Lauderdale County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 18.4%
Low on the chart: 16.2% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lauderdale County, Mississippi.
How Lauderdale County has changed
Lauderdale County's population rose most sharply from its first year (67,316 in 1969) to 73,761 in 1974.
Lauderdale County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 80,275 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lauderdale County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Lauderdale County had its largest rise, from 31,333 in 1990 to 34,174 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Lauderdale County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 35,711 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lauderdale County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.2% | 2024 20.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,577 | 2024 $56,828 |
The table uses 3.8% 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 Lauderdale County's history
1986
A tornado in March 1986 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
A thunderstorm in April 1990 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in March 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in April 2003 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 80,261. The 2020 Census counted 72,984, 91% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lauderdale County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lauderdale County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Lauderdale County, in Mississippi and Alabama, score higher than it does. Of the group, Lauderdale County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Kemper County gets the largest, at 44.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sumter County, AL | 97 | 32.6% | 39.7% |
| Kemper County, MS | 94 | 25.4% | 44.7% |
| Choctaw County, AL | 93 | 21.9% | 39.2% |
| Clarke County, MS | 92 | 19.6% | 36.8% |
| Newton County, MS | 92 | 21.6% | 33.7% |
| Lauderdale County, MS | 91 | 20.0% | 29.7% |
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 Lauderdale County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Lauderdale County's poverty rate was 20.0% in 2024, 38th 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, Lauderdale County ranks 35th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lauderdale 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 Lauderdale 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 Lauderdale County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.