About one in 10 people in Scotland County, Missouri, has a disability
In Scotland County, 9.8% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Scotland County's score
In Scotland County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 56.9. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 14.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 21.4 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Scotland 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.
Even so, Scotland County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (39.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 56.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.6% · 202453rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.1% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability9.8% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance39.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,091 · 202470th percentile
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- 40.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202621st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.1% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
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- 33.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.4% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202559th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.1% · second quarter of 202633rd percentile
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- 23.3 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 rent10.3% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.2% · fiscal year 202733rd percentile
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- 14.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.4% · August 202524th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people21.4 · 20255th or lower 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 Scotland 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 Scotland County, 19.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Scotland County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Scotland County rose most sharply after its 1979 low, from 13.7% in 1979 to 19.3% in 1984.
In Scotland County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 23.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Scotland County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.4%; 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 Scotland County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 4.2%
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 7.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Scotland County, Missouri.
How Scotland County has changed
Scotland County's population had its largest drop, from 5,615 in 1979 to 5,242 in 1984.
Scotland County's population fell 16% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 5,793 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Scotland County, Missouri.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Scotland County rose 8% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 1,296 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Scotland County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.8% | 2024 13.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,915 | 2024 $60,091 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Scotland County's history
1833
The first white settlement in Scotland County was in 1833 by brothers Levi and George Rhodes near Sand Hill. Wikipedia
1841
Organized January 29, 1841. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 13,232. The 2020 Census counted 4,716, 36% of the peak. Census Bureau
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Hail in May 2003 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Scotland County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Scotland County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Scotland County, in Missouri and Iowa, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Scotland County ranks 6th of the seven; Knox County is highest, at 32.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adair County, MO | 57 | 21.9% | 28.6% |
| Clark County, MO | 56 | 13.7% | 29.8% |
| Van Buren County, IA | 40 | 16.8% | 30.5% |
| Schuyler County, MO | 37 | 14.7% | 29.2% |
| Knox County, MO | 35 | 14.7% | 32.9% |
| Scotland County, MO | 21 | 13.6% | 23.4% |
| Davis County, IA | 10 | 10.4% | 21.3% |
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 Scotland County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Scotland County's poverty rate was 13.6% in 2024, 65th 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, Scotland County ranks 103rd of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Scotland 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 Services of Eastern 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 Scotland 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 Scotland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.