About one in five people in Webster County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Webster County, 22.4% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 65% of U.S. counties.
What drives Webster County's score
In Webster County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 80.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 8.7%, August 2025, higher than in 87% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 74.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Webster 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.
Webster County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.0%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.9%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 80.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.7% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.7% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.6% · second quarter of 202673rd percentile
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- 74.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.3% · 202466th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.8% · 202467th percentile
- People with a disability22.4% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance10.8% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,401 · 202476th percentile
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- 68.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.5% · August 202551st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people250.3 · 202585th percentile
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- 40.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202613th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.9% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
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- 31.5 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 rent15.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th 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 Webster 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 Webster County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Webster County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Webster County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 36.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Webster County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Webster County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 19.0% in 2010 to 22.9% in 2011.
The share of households in Webster County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 16.3% 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, Webster County, Mississippi.
How Webster County has changed
Webster County's population made its largest gain on the way to its 1979 high, from 10,172 in 1974 to 10,528 in 1979.
Webster County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 10,528 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Webster County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Webster County had its largest drop, from 3,374 in 2000 to 2,245 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Webster County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 38% since
High on the chart: 3,374 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Webster County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.5% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.9% | 2024 15.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,905 | 2024 $57,401 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.0% 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 Webster County's history
1861
Edwards-Gray feud erupted 1861; three Gray brothers killed judge Edward D. Edwards Sr. and son Luther Edwards; mob shot/hanged Gray brothers. Wikipedia
1874
Formed in 1874 as Sumner County during Reconstruction from parts of Montgomery, Chickasaw, Choctaw and Oktibbeha counties. Name changed to Webster County in 1882. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 14,853. The 2020 Census counted 9,926, 67% of the peak. Census Bureau
1976
A tornado in March 1976 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Webster County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Webster County beside its neighbors
All seven counties that border Webster County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Webster County ranks 5th of the eight; Montgomery County is highest, at 43.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, MS | 97 | 22.8% | 43.8% |
| Clay County, MS | 95 | 20.6% | 31.0% |
| Chickasaw County, MS | 93 | 23.1% | 39.9% |
| Grenada County, MS | 92 | 19.4% | 37.4% |
| Choctaw County, MS | 85 | 20.6% | 33.9% |
| Calhoun County, MS | 83 | 18.6% | 39.8% |
| Oktibbeha County, MS | 82 | 19.4% | 23.5% |
| Webster County, MS | 65 | 15.3% | 36.5% |
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 Webster County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Webster County's poverty rate was 15.3% in 2024, 73rd 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, Webster County ranks 76th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Webster 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 Webster 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 Webster County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.