In Cooper County, Missouri, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Cooper County, 15.6% of the median household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom at HUD's fair market rent (HUD and Census Bureau, HUD rent fiscal year 2027; household income 2024). That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cooper County's score
In Cooper County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 52.7. Jobs are the lowest part, at 27.5. About one in six adults aged 25 to 54 (16.1%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 77% of U.S. counties.
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.
Cooper County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Cooper 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.
- 52.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.1% · August 202546th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people147.5 · 202559th percentile
-
- 42.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a credit card behind2.8% · August 20258th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score24.3% · Q4 202553rd percentile
-
- 40.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line14.2% · 202434th percentile
- People with a disability15.1% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,980 · 202431st percentile
- People below the poverty line11.6% · 202436th percentile
- People without health insurance8.7% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
-
- 28.1 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 income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent18.3% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
-
- 27.5 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.1% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.6% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202632nd percentile
-
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 Cooper 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
Cooper County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cooper County in 2024, pay from work was 59 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 14 cents. Benefit checks were 26 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 10 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Cooper County, benefit checks rose from 10 to 26 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Cooper County, Missouri: 26.4% and 59.3% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 26.4% of all personal income in Cooper County, Missouri (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 Cooper County, 19.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Cooper County has changed
The number of people living in Cooper County grew by about 15% between 1969 and 2024, from 14,943 to 17,122. The number of jobs located there grew by about 13% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 6.6% in 1990 to 3.7% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 14,943 | 2024 17,122 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 4,298 | 2024 4,872 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.6% | 2024 11.6% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $22,613 | 2024 $73,980 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 10.1% | 2024 26.4% |
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 Cooper County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 22,532. The 2020 Census counted 17,103, 76% of the peak. Census Bureau
1818
Organized December 17, 1818. Wikipedia
2015
Flash flood: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cooper County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Cooper County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Cooper County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cooper County ranks 5th of the seven; Morgan County is highest, at 32.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morgan County, MO | 78 | 16.4% | 32.8% |
| Pettis County, MO | 64 | 15.7% | 29.6% |
| Saline County, MO | 61 | 15.5% | 29.0% |
| Howard County, MO | 35 | 11.2% | 29.0% |
| Cooper County, MO | 29 | 11.6% | 26.4% |
| Boone County, MO | 23 | 14.3% | 16.7% |
| Moniteau County, MO | 17 | 11.2% | 22.0% |
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 Cooper County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Cooper County's poverty rate was 11.6% in 2024, 88th 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, Cooper County ranks 90th of 115 in the state.
Cooper County in photographs
Places in Cooper County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Stephen Cooper of Lamine was the Tax Collector of Cooper County, Missouri in 1823.
Photo: Unknown author Unknown author via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
Photo of gazebos at the Chouteau Springs, Cooper County, Missouri resort circa 1900, taken by Maximilian E.
Cooper County, Missouri: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Cooper County, Missouri?
11.6% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in nine people. Among children it was 14.2%.
Is Cooper County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Cooper County's poverty rate was 11.6% in 2024, 88th 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, Cooper County ranks 90th of 115 in the state.
What is the population of Cooper County, Missouri?
About 17,122 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 17,103, 76% of the county's peak of 22,532 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 Cooper 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.
-
The Legal Aid and Defender Association (LAD)
Legal aid
-
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 Cooper 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 Cooper County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.