Unemployment in Perry County, Missouri, is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties
In Perry County, 3.0% of the labor force was out of work, on average (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026). That is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Perry County's score
In Perry County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 59.6. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 20.5. About one in eight renters (12.4%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 79% 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.
Perry 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 Perry 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.
- 59.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.2% · August 202546th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people190 · 202572nd percentile
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- 38.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a credit card behind4.2% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score19.7% · Q4 202532nd percentile
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- 36.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line14.1% · 202434th percentile
- People with a disability15.4% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$69,940 · 202441st percentile
- People below the poverty line11.5% · 202435th percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
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- 34.3 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.6% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.0% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202613th percentile
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- 20.5 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 income17.9% · fiscal year 202720th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent12.4% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
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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 Perry 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
Perry County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Perry County in 2024, pay from work was 59 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 15 cents. Benefit checks were 27 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 11 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Perry County, benefit checks rose from 11 to 27 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Perry County, Missouri: 27.0% and 58.5% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 27.0% of all personal income in Perry 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 Perry County, 19.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Perry County has changed
The number of people living in Perry County grew by about 30% between 1969 and 2024, from 14,670 to 19,100. The number of jobs located there grew by about 52% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 5.0% in 1990 to 3.2% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 14,670 | 2024 19,100 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 6,273 | 2024 9,542 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.0% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.2% | 2024 11.5% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $23,791 | 2024 $69,940 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 11.3% | 2024 27.0% |
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 Perry County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 18,971. The 2020 Census counted 18,956, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
1820
Organized November 16, 1820, effective January 1, 1821, from Ste. Genevieve County. Wikipedia
1967
Tornado: $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Tornado: $1 million in property damage, two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
Thunderstorm wind: $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
Tornado: $8 million in property damage, one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Perry County, 22 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Perry County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Perry County, in Missouri and Illinois, seven score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Perry County ranks 7th of the nine; Madison County is highest, at 41.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County, IL | 79 | 20.5% | 27.7% |
| St. Francois County, MO | 73 | 14.6% | 34.0% |
| Madison County, MO | 71 | 15.1% | 41.7% |
| Bollinger County, MO | 55 | 14.5% | 35.6% |
| Union County, IL | 53 | 17.2% | 35.6% |
| Randolph County, IL | 40 | 14.7% | 30.3% |
| Cape Girardeau County, MO | 39 | 12.4% | 23.0% |
| Perry County, MO | 28 | 11.5% | 27.0% |
| Ste. Genevieve County, MO | 11 | 9.8% | 25.5% |
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 Perry County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 11.5% in 2024, 90th 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, Perry County ranks 92nd of 115 in the state.
Perry County in photographs
Places in Perry County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Perryville, Missouri County Court House on the main square.
Bois Brule Bottoms, Perry County, Missouri.
Perry County, Missouri: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Perry County, Missouri?
11.5% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in nine people. Among children it was 14.1%.
Is Perry County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 11.5% in 2024, 90th 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, Perry County ranks 92nd of 115 in the state.
What is the population of Perry County, Missouri?
About 19,100 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 18,956, 100% of the county's peak of 18,971 in 2010.
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 Perry 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.
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The Legal Aid and Defender Association (LAD)
Legal aid
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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.
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 Perry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.