About one in four people in Yazoo County, Mississippi, lives below the poverty line
In Yazoo County, 25.5% of people lived below the poverty line (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024). That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Yazoo County's score
In Yazoo County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 98.6. People with a car or retail loan behind: 17.3%, August 2025, higher than in 99% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 92.4.
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.
Yazoo 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 Yazoo 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.
- 98.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind17.3% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a credit card behind12.1% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.2% · Q4 202597th percentile
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- 92.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector40.0% · August 202594th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people294.6 · 202590th percentile
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- 90.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line35.4% · 202496th percentile
- People with a disability21.7% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,496 · 202496th percentile
- People below the poverty line25.5% · 202496th percentile
- People without health insurance11.4% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
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- 82.0 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 income26.8% · fiscal year 202790th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent22.2% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
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- 69.3 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.9% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average4.6% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202670th 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 Yazoo 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
Yazoo County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Yazoo County in 2024, pay from work was 47 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 18 cents. Benefit checks were 35 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 12 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Yazoo County, benefit checks rose from 12 to 35 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Yazoo County, Mississippi: 34.5% and 47.1% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 34.5% of all personal income in Yazoo 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 Yazoo County, 15.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Yazoo County has changed
The number of people living in Yazoo County fell by about two in 10 between 1969 and 2024, from 27,838 to 23,024. The number of jobs located there stayed about the same from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 7.0% in 1990 to 4.8% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 27,838 | 2024 23,024 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 6,423 | 2024 6,234 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 39.8% | 2024 25.5% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $15,119 | 2024 $45,496 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 12.4% | 2024 34.5% |
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 Yazoo County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 46,672. The 2020 Census counted 26,743, 57% of the peak. Census Bureau
1823
Yazoo County was established on January 21, 1823; area acquired from Choctaw Indians in 1820. Wikipedia
1927
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 did much damage to the county. Wikipedia
1971
Tornado: 11 deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Lightning: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Tornado: $140 million in property damage, four deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
CO2 pipeline blowout in 2011 near Tinsley caused worker to sicken, killed deer, fish and birds. Wikipedia
2019
Flood: two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
CO2 pipeline ruptured near Satartia in 2020, evacuated over 300 people and hospitalized 46 from carbon dioxide poisoning. Wikipedia
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Since 1971
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Yazoo County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Yazoo County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Yazoo County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Yazoo County ranks 4th of the eight; Holmes County is highest, at 54.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holmes County, MS | 100 | 34.3% | 54.4% |
| Yazoo County, MS | 98 | 25.5% | 34.5% |
| Hinds County, MS | 98 | 22.2% | 26.8% |
| Humphreys County, MS | 98 | 33.3% | 47.1% |
| Sharkey County, MS | 96 | 32.6% | 44.7% |
| Warren County, MS | 88 | 18.8% | 28.2% |
| Issaquena County, MS | 87 | 55.7% | 31.9% |
| Madison County, MS | 40 | 9.9% | 12.4% |
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 Yazoo County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Yazoo County's poverty rate was 25.5% in 2024, 16th 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, Yazoo County ranks 9th of 82 in the state.
Yazoo County in photographs
Places in Yazoo County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Rick's Memorial Library in Yazoo City, Mississippi.
US49W South - Yazoo County Sign.
Photo: formulanone from Huntsville, United States via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
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Yazoo County, Mississippi: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Yazoo County, Mississippi?
25.5% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in four people. Among children it was 35.4%.
Is Yazoo County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Yazoo County's poverty rate was 25.5% in 2024, 16th 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, Yazoo County ranks 9th of 82 in the state.
What is the population of Yazoo County, Mississippi?
About 23,024 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 26,743, 57% of the county's peak of 46,672 in 1910.
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 Yazoo 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.
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 Yazoo County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.