In Hickory County, Missouri, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2005
In 2024, 47 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hickory County's score
In Hickory County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 93.0. About two in five adults aged 25 to 54 (44.4%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 84.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hickory 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.
Hickory County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (91.8, 2025) and people with a subprime credit score (40.1%, Q2 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 93.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202690th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working44.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 84.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.0% · 202470th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.7% · 202483rd percentile
- People with a disability25.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance13.2% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,694 · 202487th percentile
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- 78.5 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 rent31.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.9% · fiscal year 202762nd percentile
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- 64.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.5% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.1% · second quarter of 202649th percentile
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- 49.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.0% · August 202567th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people91.8 · 202531st 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 Hickory 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 Hickory County, 32.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hickory County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Hickory County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 41.4% in 2004 to 50.1% in 2009.
In Hickory County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Missouri
In Hickory County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 46.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hickory County getting SNAP food aid made its largest gain on the way to its 2011 high, from 16.0% in 2010 to 18.8% in 2011.
The share of households in Hickory County getting SNAP food aid fell by about a third from 2009 to 2024, reaching 11.9%, with its low point on the chart in 2023
Low on the chart: 10.6% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hickory County, Missouri.
How Hickory County has changed
Hickory County's population had its largest rise, from 5,303 in 1974 to 6,134 in 1979.
Hickory County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 9,561 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hickory County, Missouri.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hickory County rose by more than half to 1,546, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 1,546. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hickory County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 6.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.2% | 2024 16.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $13,223 | 2024 $52,694 |
The table uses 6.7% for 2025; the score uses 5.7% 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 Hickory County's history
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 9,985. The 2020 Census counted 8,279, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
2006
A tornado in March 2006 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A thunderstorm in July 2016 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A thunderstorm in May 2019 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1976
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hickory County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hickory County beside its neighbors
Hickory County scores higher than all five counties that border it. Of the group, Hickory County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (46.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hickory County, MO | 89 | 16.0% | 46.9% |
| Benton County, MO | 88 | 18.8% | 39.1% |
| Dallas County, MO | 73 | 17.0% | 33.3% |
| St. Clair County, MO | 54 | 16.0% | 40.0% |
| Polk County, MO | 48 | 15.2% | 29.9% |
| Camden County, MO | 36 | 11.6% | 30.6% |
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 Hickory County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Hickory County's poverty rate was 16.0% in 2024, 28th 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, Hickory County ranks 9th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hickory 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.
Download the CSV for Hickory 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 Hickory County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.