About one in four people in Dunklin County, Missouri, lives below the poverty line
In Dunklin County, 25.4% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Dunklin County's score
In Dunklin County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 94.0. Income and the safety net comes next, at 93.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Dunklin 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.
Dunklin County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (12.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.2% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.4% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score60.3% · second quarter of 202696th percentile
-
- 93.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line25.4% · 202496th percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.9% · 202496th percentile
- People with a disability22.1% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance15.1% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,022 · 202495th percentile
-
- 90.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector40.7% · August 202595th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people255.3 · 202586th percentile
-
- 83.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.8% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
-
- 50.5 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 rent12.2% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.6% · fiscal year 202781st percentile
-
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 Dunklin 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 Dunklin County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Dunklin County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Dunklin County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 41.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Dunklin County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 41.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Dunklin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 27.7% in 2019 to 25.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Dunklin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen to 24.6%
Low on the chart: 24.0% 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, Dunklin County, Missouri.
How Dunklin County has changed
Dunklin County's population had its largest drop, from 31,026 in 2014 to 28,531 in 2019.
Dunklin County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 37,096 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Dunklin County, Missouri.
The number of jobs located in Dunklin County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 9,944 in 2015 to 8,581 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Dunklin County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 10,380 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Dunklin County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 5.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 27.7% | 2024 25.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,989 | 2024 $47,022 |
The table uses 5.5% for 2025; the score uses 5.4% 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 Dunklin County's history
1845
Dunklin County was officially created from Stoddard County on February 14, 1845. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 45,329. The 2020 Census counted 28,283, 62% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
A tornado in November 1973 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1981
A tornado in April 1981 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flood in December 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A tornado in February 2018 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Dunklin County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Dunklin County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Dunklin County, in Missouri and Arkansas, two score higher. Of the group, Dunklin County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (41.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pemiscot County, MO | 99 | 23.7% | 37.6% |
| Mississippi County, AR | 97 | 20.0% | 28.6% |
| Dunklin County, MO | 96 | 25.4% | 41.3% |
| Butler County, MO | 93 | 20.3% | 38.2% |
| New Madrid County, MO | 91 | 19.1% | 32.5% |
| Craighead County, AR | 88 | 18.4% | 24.3% |
| Greene County, AR | 85 | 14.1% | 30.3% |
| Clay County, AR | 76 | 15.9% | 36.8% |
| Stoddard County, MO | 70 | 14.8% | 34.9% |
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 Dunklin County the poorest county in Missouri?
Yes, Dunklin County's poverty rate was 25.4% in 2024, the highest of 115 counties in Missouri (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Dunklin County ranks 4th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Dunklin 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.
-
Legal Services of Southern Missouri
Legal aid
-
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 Dunklin 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 Dunklin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.