About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Leake County, Mississippi, is not working
In Leake County, 34.2% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Leake County's score
In Leake County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 96.1. People with a credit card behind: 13.9%, August 2025, higher than in 99% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 89.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Leake 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.
Leake County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 96.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind13.9% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind11.8% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.9% · second quarter of 202692nd percentile
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- 89.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.3% · August 202590th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people272.8 · 202587th percentile
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- 82.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.8% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.5% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability17.3% · 2020 to 202461st percentile
- People without health insurance15.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,130 · 202477th percentile
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- 56.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202617th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working34.2% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
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- 38.5 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 rent13.1% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.1% · fiscal year 202754th 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 Leake 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 Leake County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Leake County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Leake County rose most in two steps: 15.2% in 1969 to 21.0% in 1974; 25.1% in 2004 to 30.9% in 2009.
In Leake County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 32.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Leake County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Leake County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.0% in 2019 to 12.3% in 2020.
The share of households in Leake County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 11.5% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Leake County, Mississippi.
How Leake County has changed
Leake County's population had its largest rise, from 20,812 in 1999 to 22,561 in 2004.
Leake County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 23,790 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Leake County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Leake County had its largest rise, from 5,532 in 1995 to 6,275 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Leake County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 6,275 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Leake County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.4% | 2024 20.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,802 | 2024 $57,130 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Leake County's history
1833
Founded 1833. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 24,570. The 2020 Census counted 21,275, 87% of the peak. Census Bureau
1958
A tornado in February 1958 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1966
A tornado in March 1966 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in February 1976 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in April 1982 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility closed. Wikipedia
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Since 1974
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Leake County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Leake County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Leake County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Leake County ranks 4th of the six; Attala County is highest, at 36.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newton County, MS | 92 | 21.6% | 33.7% |
| Attala County, MS | 87 | 19.5% | 36.2% |
| Leake County, MS | 87 | 20.8% | 32.6% |
| Scott County, MS | 86 | 19.2% | 33.0% |
| Neshoba County, MS | 85 | 18.6% | 29.2% |
| Madison County, MS | 37 | 9.9% | 12.4% |
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 Leake County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Leake County's poverty rate was 20.8% in 2024, 32nd 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, Leake County ranks 46th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Leake 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.
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 Leake County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.