About one in four people in Winston County, Mississippi, has a disability
In Winston County, 23.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Winston County's score
In Winston County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 91.6. People with a car or retail loan behind: 13.2%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 91.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Winston 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.
Winston County does better than most counties on one measure: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 91.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.8% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind13.2% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score52.7% · second quarter of 202685th percentile
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- 91.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.6% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people436.4 · 2025top 5%
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- 87.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.0% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line31.2% · 202493rd percentile
- People with a disability23.6% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,729 · 202490th percentile
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- 62.1 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 rent20.9% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.4% · fiscal year 202757th percentile
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- 59.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.4% · 2020 to 202479th 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 Winston 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 Winston County, 21.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Winston County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Winston County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 26.7% in 2004 to 34.9% in 2009.
In Winston County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 34.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Winston County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 34.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Winston County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 24.5% in 2019 to 19.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Winston County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 14.5% 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, Winston County, Mississippi.
How Winston County has changed
Winston County's population had its largest rise, from 18,482 in 1969 to 19,628 in 1974.
Winston County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 20,105 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Winston County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Winston County had its largest drop, from 5,308 in 2005 to 4,413 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Winston County fell 16% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2010
Low on the chart: 4,413 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Winston County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.9% | 2024 22.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,554 | 2024 $50,729 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Winston County's history
1833
Founded in 1833 as one of sixteen counties formed when chief Greenwood LeFlore ceded the lands in the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 22,751. The 2020 Census counted 17,714, 78% of the peak. Census Bureau
1977
A tornado in February 1977 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in November 2004 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A thunderstorm in March 2006 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A tornado in April 2014 did $115 million in property damage and killed 10 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Winston County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Winston County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Winston County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Winston County ranks 4th of the seven; Kemper County is highest, at 44.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Noxubee County, MS | 99 | 27.4% | 38.8% |
| Kemper County, MS | 94 | 25.4% | 44.7% |
| Winston County, MS | 93 | 22.0% | 34.7% |
| Attala County, MS | 87 | 19.5% | 36.2% |
| Choctaw County, MS | 85 | 20.6% | 33.9% |
| Neshoba County, MS | 85 | 18.6% | 29.2% |
| Oktibbeha County, MS | 82 | 19.4% | 23.5% |
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 Winston County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Winston County's poverty rate was 22.0% in 2024, 25th 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, Winston County ranks 28th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Winston 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 Winston 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 Winston County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.