About one in nine people in Bates County, Missouri, lives below the poverty line
In Bates County, 11.1% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 68% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 53% of U.S. counties.
What drives Bates County's score
In Bates County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 53.8. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 40.4. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 19.8% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 59% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Bates 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.
Bates County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 53.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.1% · August 202560th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.4% · second quarter of 202657th percentile
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- 53.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.1% · 202431st percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.5% · 202441st percentile
- People with a disability18.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance11.3% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,501 · 202450th percentile
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- 46.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.3% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people67.7 · 202518th percentile
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- 45.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202636th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.4% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
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- 40.4 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 rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202740th 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 Bates 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 Bates County, 19.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Bates County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Bates County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 28.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Bates County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Bates County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 13.3% in 2023 to 11.2% in 2024.
The share of households in Bates County getting SNAP food aid fell by about a quarter to 11.2%, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 16.1% in 2014. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Bates County, Missouri.
How Bates County has changed
Bates County's population rose 4% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1994 and 1999
High on the chart: 17,088 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Bates County, Missouri.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Bates County rose by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 3,747, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 3,776 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Bates County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.2% | 2024 11.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,693 | 2024 $66,501 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Bates County's history
1841
County organized January 29, 1841. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 30,141. The 2020 Census counted 16,042, 53% of the peak. Census Bureau
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $6.75 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Heavy rain in June 2007 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A thunderstorm in May 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Bates County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Bates County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Bates County, in Missouri and Kansas, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Bates County ranks 4th of the seven; St. Clair County is highest, at 40.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry County, MO | 62 | 14.4% | 33.8% |
| Vernon County, MO | 57 | 14.9% | 35.2% |
| Linn County, KS | 55 | 10.7% | 27.8% |
| St. Clair County, MO | 54 | 16.0% | 40.0% |
| Bates County, MO | 46 | 11.1% | 28.7% |
| Cass County, MO | 32 | 7.0% | 19.8% |
| Miami County, KS | 14 | 7.2% | 17.8% |
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 Bates County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Bates County's poverty rate was 11.1% in 2024, 95th highest of 115 in Missouri (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Dunklin County, at 25.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Bates County ranks 63rd of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Bates 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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Legal Aid of Western Missouri
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.
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 Bates County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.