About one in four people in Perry County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Perry County, 27.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Perry County's score
In Perry County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 86.7. Late payments on loans come next, at 78.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Perry 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.
Perry County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.8% · 202479th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.3% · 202482nd percentile
- People with a disability27.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance15.8% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,764 · 202485th percentile
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- 78.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.5% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.2% · second quarter of 202686th percentile
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- 68.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.3% · August 202554th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people229.8 · 202581st percentile
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- 66.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.2% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
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- 59.1 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 rent13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.4% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
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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 Perry 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 Perry County, 19.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Perry County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Perry County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 38.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Perry County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 14.7% in 2023 to 9.9% in 2024.
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid fell by about half to 9.9%, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 22.0% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Perry County, Mississippi.
How Perry County has changed
Perry County's population had its largest rise, from 9,952 in 1979 to 10,803 in 1984.
Perry County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 11,406
High on the chart: 12,233 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Perry County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Perry County had its largest rise, from 2,337 in 1990 to 2,874 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Perry County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 2,874 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Perry County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.1% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.4% | 2024 17.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,948 | 2024 $53,764 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Perry County's history
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 14,682. The 2020 Census counted 11,511, 78% of the peak. Census Bureau
1958
A tornado in February 1958 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in December 2018 did $1.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
32 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Perry County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Perry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Perry County, three score higher. Of the group, Perry County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (38.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greene County, MS | 94 | 22.0% | 33.7% |
| Forrest County, MS | 92 | 21.4% | 28.3% |
| Wayne County, MS | 91 | 21.3% | 32.1% |
| Perry County, MS | 86 | 17.8% | 38.3% |
| Jones County, MS | 79 | 19.2% | 32.3% |
| Stone County, MS | 78 | 16.0% | 35.8% |
| George County, MS | 71 | 14.1% | 28.5% |
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 Perry County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 17.8% in 2024, 60th 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, Perry County ranks 50th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Perry 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 Perry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.