About one in three people in Wilkinson County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Wilkinson County, 31.6% 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 99% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wilkinson County's score
In Wilkinson County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.0. People with a car or retail loan behind: 19.4%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 91.1.
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.
Wilkinson County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Wilkinson 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.
- 95.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind19.4% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a credit card behind15.8% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.8% · Q4 202595th percentile
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- 91.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line37.7% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability19.8% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$38,349 · 202495th percentile
- People below the poverty line31.6% · 202495th percentile
- People without health insurance15.9% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
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- 89.3 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working40.7% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average5.2% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202683rd percentile
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- 84.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector40.4% · August 202594th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people198.6 · 202574th percentile
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- 77.5 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 income28.3% · fiscal year 202794th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent19.9% · 2020 to 202460th 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 Wilkinson 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
Wilkinson County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Wilkinson County in 2024, pay from work was 43 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 13 cents. Benefit checks were 43 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks brought in more than pay in three of the years since 1969, but pay is ahead now.
In Wilkinson County, benefit checks rose from 12 to 43 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Wilkinson County, Mississippi: 43.4% and 43.4% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 43.4% of all personal income in Wilkinson 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 Wilkinson County, 19.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Wilkinson County has changed
The number of people living in Wilkinson County fell by about three in 10 between 1969 and 2024, from 11,300 to 7,820. The number of jobs located there fell by about three in 10 from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 8.9% in 1990 to 6.0% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 11,300 | 2024 7,820 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 2,086 | 2024 1,440 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.9% | 2025 6.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 38.8% | 2024 31.6% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $12,842 | 2024 $38,349 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 12.1% | 2024 43.4% |
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 Wilkinson County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 21,453. The 2020 Census counted 8,587, 40% of the peak. Census Bureau
1920
Boll weevil infestation destroyed cotton crops in early 20th century. Wikipedia
2008
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
Flash flood: $5.64 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
32 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wilkinson County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Wilkinson County beside its neighbors
Wilkinson County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Mississippi and Louisiana. Of the group, Wilkinson County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (43.4%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilkinson County, MS | 99 | 31.6% | 43.4% |
| Concordia Parish, LA | 99 | 27.7% | 40.9% |
| Adams County, MS | 98 | 24.0% | 35.6% |
| Amite County, MS | 91 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| Franklin County, MS | 89 | 18.8% | 38.1% |
| East Feliciana Parish, LA | 64 | 18.4% | 31.7% |
| West Feliciana Parish, LA | 53 | 23.3% | 20.9% |
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 Wilkinson County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Wilkinson County's poverty rate was 31.6% in 2024, 9th 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, Wilkinson County ranks 8th of 82 in the state.
Wilkinson County in photographs
Places in Wilkinson County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Wilkinson County courthouse in Woodville, Mississippi.
Adams County and Wilkinson County Mississippi circa 1820.
Wilkinson County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Wilkinson County, Mississippi?
31.6% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in three people. Among children it was 37.7%.
Is Wilkinson County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Wilkinson County's poverty rate was 31.6% in 2024, 9th 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, Wilkinson County ranks 8th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Wilkinson County, Mississippi?
About 7,820 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 8,587, 40% of the county's peak of 21,453 in 1900.
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 Wilkinson 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 1,311 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 Wilkinson 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 Wilkinson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.