Benefit checks make up 39 cents of every dollar of income in Pike County, Mississippi
In Pike County, 39.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks (Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024). That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pike County's score
In Pike County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.6. About two in five people (43.4%, Q4 2025) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 97% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 90.5.
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.
Pike 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 Pike 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 behind11.2% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a credit card behind9.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.4% · Q4 202597th percentile
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- 90.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.3% · August 202586th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people357.9 · 202594th percentile
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- 87.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line31.0% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability19.4% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$46,164 · 202496th percentile
- People below the poverty line21.4% · 202490th percentile
- People without health insurance12.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
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- 78.6 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.8% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average4.5% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202666th percentile
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- 77.0 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 income27.0% · fiscal year 202790th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent20.3% · 2020 to 202463rd 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 Pike 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
Pike County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pike County in 2024, pay from work was 47 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 14 cents. Benefit checks were 39 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 15 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Pike County, benefit checks rose from 15 to 39 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Pike County, Mississippi: 39.1% and 47.3% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 39.1% of all personal income in Pike 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 Pike County, 17.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Pike County has changed
The number of people living in Pike County grew by about 21% between 1969 and 2024, from 32,133 to 38,980. The number of jobs located there grew by about 17% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 7.9% in 1990 to 5.0% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 32,133 | 2024 38,980 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 12,331 | 2024 14,377 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 5.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 30.8% | 2024 21.4% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $15,548 | 2024 $46,164 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 14.8% | 2024 39.1% |
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 Pike County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 40,404. The 2020 Census counted 40,324, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
1815
Formed from Marion County by act of Territorial General Assembly on December 9, 1815. Wikipedia
1975
Tornado: $25 million in property damage, four deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
1977
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
34 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pike County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Pike County beside its neighbors
Pike County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Mississippi and Louisiana. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pike County ranks 3rd of the six; Washington Parish is highest, at 41.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pike County, MS | 98 | 21.4% | 39.1% |
| Tangipahoa Parish, LA | 94 | 19.4% | 29.8% |
| Washington Parish, LA | 94 | 25.6% | 41.4% |
| Amite County, MS | 91 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| Walthall County, MS | 91 | 22.3% | 39.2% |
| Lincoln County, MS | 88 | 16.2% | 29.0% |
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 Pike County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Pike County's poverty rate was 21.4% in 2024, 29th 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, Pike County ranks 11th of 82 in the state.
Pike County in photographs
Places in Pike County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Original description: Interior of Magnolia Cotton Mills spinning room.
Pike County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Pike County, Mississippi?
21.4% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in five people. Among children it was 31.0%.
Is Pike County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Pike County's poverty rate was 21.4% in 2024, 29th 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, Pike County ranks 11th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Pike County, Mississippi?
About 38,980 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 40,324, 100% of the county's peak of 40,404 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 Pike 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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D&e, a Housing and Economic Empowerment Center, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
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 Pike County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.