About one in four adults aged 25 to 54 in Clark County, Missouri, is not working
In Clark County, 24.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 70% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clark County's score
In Clark County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 61.0. Income and the safety net comes next, at 57.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clark 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.
Clark County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (13.4%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.4%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202650th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.5% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
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- 57.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.7% · 202454th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.1% · 202465th percentile
- People with a disability13.4% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- People without health insurance10.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,565 · 202471st percentile
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- 54.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.0% · August 202549th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people150.6 · 202560th percentile
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- 53.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.4% · August 202565th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.0% · second quarter of 202637th percentile
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- 43.6 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 rent18.4% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.4% · fiscal year 202735th 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 Clark 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 Clark 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
Clark County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Clark County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 29.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Clark County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Clark County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2022 low, from 9.7% in 2021 to 7.0% in 2022.
The share of households in Clark County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 7.8%
Low on the chart: 7.0% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Clark County, Missouri.
How Clark County has changed
Clark County's population fell by about a fifth to 6,623, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 7,686. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clark County, Missouri.
The number of jobs located in Clark County had its largest rise, from 1,429 in 1995 to 1,530 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Clark County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 1,530 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clark County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.7% | 2024 13.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,145 | 2024 $59,565 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Clark County's history
1836
Organized December 16, 1836. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 15,383. The 2020 Census counted 6,634, 43% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
A tornado in May 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flood in June 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clark County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clark County beside its neighbors
Clark County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Missouri, Iowa and Illinois. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clark County ranks 5th of the seven; Knox County is highest, at 32.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark County, MO | 56 | 13.7% | 29.8% |
| Van Buren County, IA | 40 | 16.8% | 30.5% |
| Lee County, IA | 38 | 13.7% | 30.2% |
| Knox County, MO | 35 | 14.7% | 32.9% |
| Lewis County, MO | 30 | 13.4% | 30.7% |
| Scotland County, MO | 21 | 13.6% | 23.4% |
| Hancock County, IL | 18 | 10.9% | 26.3% |
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 Clark County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Clark County's poverty rate was 13.7% in 2024, 61st 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, Clark County ranks 45th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clark 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 Services of Eastern 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 Clark County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.