Benefit checks make up 34 cents of every dollar of income in Henry County, Missouri
In Henry County, 33.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 79% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Henry County's score
In Henry County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 67.0. The typical household earns $57,409 a year (2024), less than in 76% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 66.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Henry 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.
Henry County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 67.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.4% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.8% · 202463rd percentile
- People with a disability18.5% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- People without health insurance9.5% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,409 · 202476th percentile
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- 66.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.0% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people177.9 · 202569th percentile
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- 58.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.8% · second quarter of 202665th percentile
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- 53.2 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 rent20.2% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.1% · fiscal year 202743rd percentile
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- 43.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202637th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.7% · 2020 to 202449th 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 Henry 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 Henry County, 22.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Henry County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Henry County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Henry County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Henry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 10.8%
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 10.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Henry County, Missouri.
How Henry County has changed
Henry County's population rose by about a fifth to 22,575, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 20,122. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Henry County, Missouri.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Henry County rose 28% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 8,330 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Henry County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.4% | 2024 14.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,421 | 2024 $57,409 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Henry County's history
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 28,054. The 2020 Census counted 21,946, 78% of the peak. Census Bureau
2006
A tornado in March 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in June 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Henry County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Henry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Henry County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Henry County ranks 3rd of the seven; St. Clair County is highest, at 40.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benton County, MO | 88 | 18.8% | 39.1% |
| Pettis County, MO | 64 | 15.7% | 29.6% |
| Henry County, MO | 62 | 14.4% | 33.8% |
| 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% |
| Johnson County, MO | 26 | 11.8% | 24.0% |
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 Henry County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Henry County's poverty rate was 14.4% in 2024, 51st 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, Henry County ranks 37th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Henry 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 Henry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.