About one in three people in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Tallahatchie County, 32.3% of people lived below the poverty line (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024). That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tallahatchie County's score
In Tallahatchie County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 94.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 14.5%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 93.6.
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.
Tallahatchie County does better than most counties on two measures: adults 25 to 54 not working (14.1%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, 12-month average (3.2%, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Tallahatchie 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.
- 94.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind14.5% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a credit card behind9.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.3% · Q4 202595th percentile
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- 93.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector41.1% · August 202595th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people312.6 · 202592nd percentile
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- 85.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line44.0% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability16.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$43,074 · 202495th percentile
- People below the poverty line32.3% · 202495th percentile
- People without health insurance14.9% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
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- 60.0 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 income25.2% · fiscal year 202784th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent15.7% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
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- 15.4 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.1% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.2% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202618th 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 Tallahatchie 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
Tallahatchie County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Tallahatchie County in 2024, pay from work was 49 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 13 cents. Benefit checks were 38 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 16 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Tallahatchie County, benefit checks rose from 16 to 38 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Tallahatchie County, Mississippi: 38.0% and 48.6% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 38.0% of all personal income in Tallahatchie 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 Tallahatchie County, 18.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Tallahatchie County has changed
The number of people living in Tallahatchie County fell by about four in 10 between 1969 and 2024, from 19,832 to 10,921. The number of jobs located there stayed about the same from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 11.2% in 1990 to 3.6% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 19,832 | 2024 10,921 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 2,778 | 2024 2,724 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.2% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 44.3% | 2024 32.3% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $11,743 | 2024 $43,074 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 15.6% | 2024 38.0% |
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 Tallahatchie County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 35,953. The 2020 Census counted 12,715, 35% of the peak. Census Bureau
1833
December 31, 1833, after the Choctaw were relocated to Indian Territory. Wikipedia
1968
Tornado: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
Tornado: $25 million in property damage, five deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tallahatchie County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Tallahatchie County beside its neighbors
All seven counties that border Tallahatchie County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tallahatchie County ranks 5th of the eight; Quitman County is highest, at 50.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coahoma County, MS | 99 | 34.9% | 41.1% |
| Leflore County, MS | 99 | 31.2% | 34.3% |
| Panola County, MS | 97 | 20.7% | 34.2% |
| Quitman County, MS | 97 | 31.9% | 50.3% |
| Sunflower County, MS | 96 | 29.8% | 39.6% |
| Grenada County, MS | 92 | 19.4% | 37.4% |
| Yalobusha County, MS | 88 | 18.7% | 43.7% |
| Tallahatchie County, MS | 83 | 32.3% | 38.0% |
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 Tallahatchie County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Tallahatchie County's poverty rate was 32.3% in 2024, 7th 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, Tallahatchie County ranks 57th of 82 in the state.
Tallahatchie County in photographs
Places in Tallahatchie County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Tallahatchie County Courthouse in Sumner, Mississippi, United States.
MS 3 South - Tallahatchie County.
Photo: formulanone from Huntsville, United States via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
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Tallahatchie County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi?
32.3% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in three people. Among children it was 44.0%.
Is Tallahatchie County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Tallahatchie County's poverty rate was 32.3% in 2024, 7th 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, Tallahatchie County ranks 57th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Tallahatchie County, Mississippi?
About 10,921 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 12,715, 35% of the county's peak of 35,953 in 1920.
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 Tallahatchie 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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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 1,313 approved agencies 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 Tallahatchie County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
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 Tallahatchie County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.