About one in four people in Marshall County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Marshall County, 23.6% of people reported a disability (Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2020 to 2024). That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 97% of U.S. counties.
What drives Marshall County's score
In Marshall County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.6. People with a car or retail loan behind: 12.3%, August 2025, higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 86.5.
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.
Marshall County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Marshall 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.
- 95.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind12.3% · August 202597th percentile
- People with a credit card behind10.4% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.7% · Q4 202593rd percentile
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- 86.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line28.0% · 202488th percentile
- People with a disability23.6% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,244 · 202484th percentile
- People below the poverty line20.4% · 202488th percentile
- People without health insurance11.8% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
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- 84.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.0% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people480.6 · 202598th percentile
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- 84.2 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 income24.5% · fiscal year 202780th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent25.3% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
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- 67.3 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average4.3% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202659th 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 Marshall 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
Marshall County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Marshall County in 2024, pay from work was 59 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 10 cents. Benefit checks were 31 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 12 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Marshall County, benefit checks rose from 12 to 31 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Marshall County, Mississippi: 31.2% and 58.7% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 31.2% of all personal income in Marshall 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 Marshall County, 19.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Marshall County has changed
The number of people living in Marshall County grew by about 42% between 1969 and 2024, from 24,170 to 34,374. The number of jobs located there more than doubled from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 10.3% in 1990 to 4.4% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 24,170 | 2024 34,374 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 5,518 | 2024 11,291 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.3% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.7% | 2024 20.4% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $17,078 | 2024 $54,244 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 11.7% | 2024 31.2% |
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 Marshall County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 37,144. The 2020 Census counted 33,752, 91% of the peak. Census Bureau
1920
Boll weevil invasion 1920s-1930s destroyed cotton crops causing economic distress. Wikipedia
1920
Many African Americans left in Great Migration to escape southern oppression and seek northern employment. Wikipedia
1952
Tornado: nine deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
Flash flood: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
Tornado: $5 million in property damage, two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Marshall County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Marshall County beside its neighbors
Marshall County scores higher than all seven counties that border it, in Mississippi and Tennessee. For the share of income from benefit checks, Marshall County ranks 2nd of the eight; Benton County is highest, at 35.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marshall County, MS | 97 | 20.4% | 31.2% |
| Shelby County, TN | 96 | 19.0% | 19.5% |
| Benton County, MS | 86 | 19.9% | 35.7% |
| Tate County, MS | 81 | 15.0% | 27.9% |
| Union County, MS | 70 | 14.0% | 28.7% |
| DeSoto County, MS | 60 | 9.6% | 16.6% |
| Lafayette County, MS | 55 | 17.9% | 19.0% |
| Fayette County, TN | 44 | 9.3% | 17.6% |
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 Marshall County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Marshall County's poverty rate was 20.4% in 2024, 36th 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, Marshall County ranks 17th of 82 in the state.
Marshall County in photographs
Places in Marshall County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Marshall County court house in Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Photo: Thomas R Machnitzki (thomas@machnitzki.com) via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
Looking west down Mississippi Highway 310 in Marshall County, Mississippi at its intersection with Old Oxford Road.
Marshall County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Marshall County, Mississippi?
20.4% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in five people. Among children it was 28.0%.
Is Marshall County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Marshall County's poverty rate was 20.4% in 2024, 36th 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, Marshall County ranks 17th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Marshall County, Mississippi?
About 34,374 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 33,752, 91% of the county's peak of 37,144 in 2010.
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 Marshall 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 Marshall 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 Marshall County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.