About one in five people in Pontotoc County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Pontotoc County, 19.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pontotoc County's score
In Pontotoc County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 82.2. People with a credit card behind: 8.2%, August 2025, higher than in 86% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 79.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pontotoc 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.
Pontotoc County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (10.0%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.2% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.4% · second quarter of 202680th percentile
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- 79.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.8% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people402.7 · 202596th percentile
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- 72.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.9% · 202464th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.8% · 202471st percentile
- People with a disability19.0% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,898 · 202470th percentile
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- 51.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202633rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.2% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
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- 19.3 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 rent10.0% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.5% · fiscal year 202726th percentile
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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 Pontotoc 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 Pontotoc County, 15.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pontotoc County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pontotoc County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 27.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Pontotoc County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pontotoc County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.3% in 2019 to 11.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Pontotoc County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen to 9.7%
Low on the chart: 8.0% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pontotoc County, Mississippi.
How Pontotoc County has changed
Pontotoc County's population had its largest rise, from 24,049 in 1994 to 26,528 in 1999.
Pontotoc County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32,014, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 21,169. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pontotoc County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Pontotoc County had its largest rise, from 10,711 in 2010 to 12,399 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Pontotoc County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 12,399 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pontotoc County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.7% | 2024 14.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,010 | 2024 $59,898 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Pontotoc County's history
1937
Works Progress Administration post office built during Great Depression. Wikipedia
1997
A tornado in March 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in April 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A tornado in February 2001 did $28 million in property damage and killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 31,184, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A tornado in April 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pontotoc County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pontotoc County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Pontotoc County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pontotoc County ranks 4th of the six; Chickasaw County is highest, at 39.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chickasaw County, MS | 93 | 23.1% | 39.9% |
| Calhoun County, MS | 83 | 18.6% | 39.8% |
| Lee County, MS | 77 | 16.2% | 24.3% |
| Pontotoc County, MS | 68 | 14.9% | 27.0% |
| Union County, MS | 68 | 14.0% | 28.7% |
| Lafayette County, MS | 53 | 17.9% | 19.0% |
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 Pontotoc County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Pontotoc County's poverty rate was 14.9% in 2024, 75th 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, Pontotoc County ranks 73rd of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pontotoc 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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North Mississippi Rural 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.
Download the CSV for Pontotoc 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 Pontotoc County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.