About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Scott County, Mississippi, are not working
In Scott County, 29.1% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 87% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Scott County's score
In Scott County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 88.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 312.6 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 92% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 85.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Scott 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.
Scott County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.1% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people312.6 · 202592nd percentile
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- 85.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.5% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score59.1% · second quarter of 202695th percentile
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- 83.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.2% · 202484th percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.3% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability18.3% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- People without health insurance13.1% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,147 · 202488th percentile
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- 52.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.1% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
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- 49.9 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 rent13.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th 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 Scott 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 Scott County, 15.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Scott County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Scott County had its largest rise, from 11.8% in 1969 to 18.5% in 1974.
In Scott County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 33.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Scott County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.0% in 2012 to 18.4% in 2013.
The share of households in Scott County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 11.7% 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, Scott County, Mississippi.
How Scott County has changed
Scott County's population had its largest rise, from 26,137 in 1994 to 28,185 in 1999.
Scott County's population rose 29% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 28,504 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Scott County, Mississippi.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Scott County rose by about a third to 13,651, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 13,270. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Scott County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.5% | 2024 19.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,703 | 2024 $52,147 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Scott County's history
1833
Founded 1833. Wikipedia
1967
A tornado in December 1967 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 28,423. The 2020 Census counted 27,990, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2003
A flash flood in April 2003 did $50 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Hail in March 2013 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Scott County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Scott County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Scott County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Scott County ranks 2nd of the six; Newton County is highest, at 33.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newton County, MS | 92 | 21.6% | 33.7% |
| Leake County, MS | 87 | 20.8% | 32.6% |
| Scott County, MS | 86 | 19.2% | 33.0% |
| Smith County, MS | 70 | 16.7% | 29.8% |
| Rankin County, MS | 48 | 8.9% | 19.7% |
| Madison County, MS | 37 | 9.9% | 12.4% |
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 Scott County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Scott County's poverty rate was 19.2% in 2024, 50th 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, Scott County ranks 49th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Scott 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 Scott County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.