About one in six people in Lowndes County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Lowndes County, 17.5% of people lived below the poverty line (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024). That is higher than in 77% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lowndes County's score
In Lowndes County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 85.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 476.6 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 98% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 85.8.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Lowndes County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (13.2%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.9%, fiscal year 2027).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Lowndes County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 85.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people476.6 · 202598th percentile
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- 85.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.9% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a credit card behind8.2% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.5% · Q4 202588th percentile
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- 67.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line26.1% · 202484th percentile
- People with a disability13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,293 · 202479th percentile
- People below the poverty line17.5% · 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
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- 54.9 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.7% · 2020 to 202461st percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.9% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202647th percentile
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- 49.7 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.9% · fiscal year 202740th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent19.6% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Lowndes County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lowndes County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lowndes County in 2024, pay from work was 56 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 17 cents. Benefit checks were 27 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 8 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Lowndes County, benefit checks rose from 8 to 27 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Lowndes County, Mississippi: 27.0% and 56.3% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 27.0% of all personal income in Lowndes County, Mississippi (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Lowndes County, 17.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Lowndes County has changed
The number of people living in Lowndes County grew by about 15% between 1969 and 2024, from 49,584 to 57,210. The number of jobs located there stayed about the same from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 6.5% in 1990 to 3.9% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 49,584 | 2024 57,210 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 27,437 | 2024 25,486 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.5% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.4% | 2024 17.5% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $21,940 | 2024 $56,293 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 7.5% | 2024 27.0% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Lowndes County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 61,586. The 2020 Census counted 58,879, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
1830
Founded 1830. Wikipedia
2000
Thunderstorm wind: $1.2 million in property damage, one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Tornado: $60 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Thunderstorm wind: $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Tornado: $2 million in property damage, one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lowndes County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Lowndes County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Lowndes County, in Mississippi and Alabama, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lowndes County ranks 6th of the seven; Noxubee County is highest, at 38.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Noxubee County, MS | 99 | 27.4% | 38.8% |
| Clay County, MS | 95 | 20.6% | 31.0% |
| Monroe County, MS | 93 | 18.2% | 33.5% |
| Pickens County, AL | 92 | 22.0% | 36.2% |
| Oktibbeha County, MS | 84 | 19.4% | 23.5% |
| Lowndes County, MS | 81 | 17.5% | 27.0% |
| Lamar County, AL | 76 | 18.1% | 38.4% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Lowndes County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Lowndes County's poverty rate was 17.5% in 2024, 61st 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, Lowndes County ranks 59th of 82 in the state.
Lowndes County in photographs
Places in Lowndes County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
1933 photograph of the Lowndes County Courthouse in Columbus, Mississippi (USA).
Photo: Historic American Buildings Survey, photographer not listed. via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Artesia Cemetery, Lowndes County, Mississippi, July 2005.
Photo: NatalieMaynor from Jackson, Mississippi, USA via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
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Lowndes County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Lowndes County, Mississippi?
17.5% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in six people. Among children it was 26.1%.
Is Lowndes County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Lowndes County's poverty rate was 17.5% in 2024, 61st 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, Lowndes County ranks 59th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Lowndes County, Mississippi?
About 57,210 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 58,879, 96% of the county's peak of 61,586 in 2000.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lowndes County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Mississippi Center for Legal Services
Legal aid
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North Mississippi Rural Legal Services
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,311 approved agencies 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 Lowndes County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Lowndes County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.