In Madison County, Mississippi, benefit checks make up only 12 cents of every dollar of income
In Madison County, 12.4% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Madison County's score
In Madison County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 67.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 23.8. Unemployment averaged 2.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Madison 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.
Even so, Madison County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (295.1, 2025) and people with a car or retail loan behind (7.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 67.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.6% · August 202544th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people295.1 · 202590th percentile
-
- 59.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.9% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.7% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.6% · second quarter of 202639th percentile
-
- 39.2 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 rent20.4% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
-
- 25.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.9% · 202421st percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability11.2% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- People without health insurance8.3% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$90,259 · 202410th percentile
-
- 23.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202612th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
-
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 Madison 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 Madison County, 15.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Madison County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Madison County had its largest rise, from 11.0% in 1969 to 14.2% in 1974.
In Madison County, pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Madison County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Madison County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.9% in 2016 to 8.8% in 2017.
The share of households in Madison County getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 7.2%, with its low point on the chart in 2021
Low on the chart: 6.3% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Madison County, Mississippi.
How Madison County has changed
Madison County's population had its largest rise, from 82,283 in 2004 to 94,071 in 2009.
Madison County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 114,247, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 43,459. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Madison County, Mississippi.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Madison County grew to about four times its 1990 size, reaching 59,649, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 41,568. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Madison County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.6% | 2024 9.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,834 | 2024 $90,259 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 2.9% 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 Madison County's history
1828
Founded January 29, 1828. Wikipedia
1958
A tornado in February 1958 killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in March 1976 did $25 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A tornado in November 2001 did $12 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Nissan Vehicle Assembly Plant opened in Canton. Wikipedia
2003
A flash flood in April 2003 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 109,145, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1969
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Madison County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Madison County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Madison County score higher than it does. Of the group, Madison County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Attala County gets the largest, at 36.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yazoo County, MS | 98 | 25.5% | 34.5% |
| Hinds County, MS | 98 | 22.2% | 26.8% |
| Attala County, MS | 87 | 19.5% | 36.2% |
| Leake County, MS | 87 | 20.8% | 32.6% |
| Scott County, MS | 86 | 19.2% | 33.0% |
| Rankin County, MS | 48 | 8.9% | 19.7% |
| 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 Madison County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Madison County's poverty rate was 9.9% in 2024, 80th 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, Madison County ranks 82nd of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Madison 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.
-
Mississippi Center for Legal Services
Legal aid
-
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 Madison 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 Madison County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.