About one in three people with a credit file in Neshoba County, Mississippi, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Neshoba County, 34.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector (Urban Institute, Debt in America, August 2025). That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Neshoba County's score
In Neshoba County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 97.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 14.7%, August 2025, higher than in 98% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 81.3.
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.
Neshoba County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, 12-month average (3.3%, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.3%, fiscal year 2027).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Neshoba 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.
- 97.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind14.7% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a credit card behind11.0% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.4% · Q4 202597th percentile
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- 81.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.6% · August 202585th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people211.9 · 202577th percentile
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- 76.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line26.3% · 202485th percentile
- People with a disability17.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,316 · 202472nd percentile
- People below the poverty line18.6% · 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance11.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
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- 53.2 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.6% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.3% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202622nd percentile
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- 47.8 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 income18.3% · fiscal year 202724th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent21.7% · 2020 to 202470th 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 Neshoba 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
Neshoba County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Neshoba County in 2024, pay from work was 58 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 13 cents. Benefit checks were 29 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 13 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Neshoba County, benefit checks rose from 13 to 29 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Neshoba County, Mississippi: 29.2% and 57.6% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 29.2% of all personal income in Neshoba 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 Neshoba County, 16.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Neshoba County has changed
The number of people living in Neshoba County grew by about 39% between 1969 and 2024, from 20,885 to 28,973. The number of jobs located there grew by about 39% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 6.6% in 1990 to 3.6% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 20,885 | 2024 28,973 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 8,730 | 2024 12,095 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.3% | 2024 18.6% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $17,917 | 2024 $59,316 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 12.6% | 2024 29.2% |
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 Neshoba County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 29,676. The 2020 Census counted 29,087, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
1833
Founded 1833 by European American settlers. Wikipedia
1982
Tornado: $25 million in property damage, three deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
Tornado: $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Tornado: $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Neshoba County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Neshoba County beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Neshoba County score higher than it does. Of the group, Neshoba County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Kemper County gets the largest, at 44.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kemper County, MS | 94 | 25.4% | 44.7% |
| Winston County, MS | 93 | 22.0% | 34.7% |
| Newton County, MS | 92 | 21.6% | 33.7% |
| Leake County, MS | 87 | 20.8% | 32.6% |
| Neshoba County, MS | 85 | 18.6% | 29.2% |
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 Neshoba County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Neshoba County's poverty rate was 18.6% in 2024, 56th 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, Neshoba County ranks 53rd of 82 in the state.
Neshoba County in photographs
Places in Neshoba County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
South Face of the Neshoba County Courthouse Philadelphia, Mississippi.
Aerial view of southeastern Neshoba County and southwestern Kemper County in Mississippi from an aircraft heading towards George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Neshoba County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Neshoba County, Mississippi?
18.6% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in five people. Among children it was 26.3%.
Is Neshoba County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Neshoba County's poverty rate was 18.6% in 2024, 56th 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, Neshoba County ranks 53rd of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Neshoba County, Mississippi?
About 28,973 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 29,087, 98% of the county's peak of 29,676 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 Neshoba 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 Neshoba 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 Neshoba County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.