Simpson County, Mississippi

County Distress Index: Elevated · 60.0 | 25,715 people · 52nd most distressed in Mississippi
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Simpson County, MS registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 60.0 — 831st nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Debt & Delinquency, where residents carry heavy debt burdens with elevated delinquency and collections rates. Within Mississippi, it ranks 52nd of 82 counties. Among its 7 neighboring counties, 4 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Simpson County's primary driver is Debt & Delinquency at 83.7 — worse than roughly 84% of U.S. counties.

Debt & Delinquency Primary driver 83.7
Debt in Collections 82
Medical Debt 47
Student Loan Delinquency 93
Auto Loan Delinquency 93
Credit Card Delinquency 95
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 92
Community Vulnerability 80.8
Uninsured Rate 75
Disability Rate 86
Income & Poverty 67.7
Poverty Rate 86
Income vs. State Median 30
Child Poverty Rate 86
Employment & Wages 36.4
Unemployment Rate 27
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 69
Business Formation Rate 13
Housing Cost Burden 31.2
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 43
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 49
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 17
Homeownership Rate 17
Rent-to-Income Ratio 31

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Simpson County compares to its 7 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Simpson County
Simpson County, MS 60.0 Elevated —
Hinds County, MS 68.9 Serious +9.0
Lawrence County, MS 66.6 Serious +6.6
Copiah County, MS 65.0 Serious +5.1
Jefferson Davis County, MS 63.7 Elevated +3.8
Covington County, MS 52.9 Elevated -7.1
Smith County, MS 52.5 Elevated -7.4
Rankin County, MS 44.5 Normal -15.5

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Simpson County
Assumption Parish, LA 60.0 Elevated 0.0
Lewis County, KY 59.9 Elevated -0.0
Logan County, AR 60.0 Elevated +0.0
Rhea County, TN 60.0 Elevated +0.0
Grayson County, VA 59.9 Elevated -0.0

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Simpson County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Simpson County

Find an Attorney

Mississippi Bar Lawyer Referral offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Mississippi Bar Lawyer Referral 601-948-4471

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving Simpson County residents at no cost.

Mississippi Center for Legal Services 1-800-498-1804
North Mississippi Rural Legal Services 1-800-898-8731

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Simpson County, Mississippi?

    Simpson County has a County Distress Index score of 60.0 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 831st nationally out of 3,144 counties and 52nd in Mississippi out of 82 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Simpson County?

    The primary driver of distress in Simpson County is Debt & Delinquency, where the county scores 83.7 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Debt in Collections, Medical Debt, Student Loan Delinquency.

  • How does Simpson County compare to neighboring counties?

    Simpson County (60.0) can be compared to its 7 neighboring counties: Hinds County, MS (68.9); Lawrence County, MS (66.6); Copiah County, MS (65.0).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Simpson County?

    Simpson County, Mississippi has a population of approximately 25,715 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a small county.