About one in five people in Prentiss County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Prentiss County, 20.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Prentiss County's score
In Prentiss County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 88.5. People with a credit card behind: 11.0%, August 2025, higher than in 96% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 78.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Prentiss 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.
Prentiss County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.6%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind11.0% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.2% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.8% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 78.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.2% · August 202561st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people385.9 · 202595th percentile
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- 75.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.3% · 202488th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.8% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability18.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$48,711 · 202493rd percentile
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- 48.5 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 202629th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.7% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
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- 45.2 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 rent13.6% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.3% · fiscal year 202765th 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 Prentiss 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 Prentiss County, 17.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Prentiss County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Prentiss County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 34.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Prentiss County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 34.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Prentiss County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 21.8% in 2017 to 18.5% in 2018.
The share of households in Prentiss County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 10.7% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Prentiss County, Mississippi.
How Prentiss County has changed
Prentiss County's population had its largest rise, from 20,003 in 1969 to 22,078 in 1974.
Prentiss County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25,489
High on the chart: 25,568 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Prentiss County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Prentiss County had its largest rise, from 8,269 in 1990 to 9,028 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Prentiss County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 9,028 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Prentiss County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.9% | 2024 20.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,450 | 2024 $48,711 |
The table uses 3.6% 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 Prentiss County's history
1866
Mobile and Ohio Railroad line severely damaged in Civil War and financially strained railroad. Wikipedia
1870
Founded April 15, 1870. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in March 1953 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in December 1967 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 25,556. The 2020 Census counted 25,008, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2001
A tornado in February 2001 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Prentiss County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Prentiss County beside its neighbors
Prentiss County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Prentiss County ranks 2nd of the seven; Tishomingo County is highest, at 34.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prentiss County, MS | 79 | 20.3% | 34.1% |
| Lee County, MS | 77 | 16.2% | 24.3% |
| Alcorn County, MS | 73 | 15.4% | 33.0% |
| Tippah County, MS | 72 | 16.2% | 32.8% |
| Union County, MS | 68 | 14.0% | 28.7% |
| Tishomingo County, MS | 68 | 15.7% | 34.2% |
| Itawamba County, MS | 60 | 18.7% | 31.4% |
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 Prentiss County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Prentiss County's poverty rate was 20.3% in 2024, 37th 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, Prentiss County ranks 62nd of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Prentiss 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 Prentiss 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 Prentiss County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.