About one in three people with a credit file in Scott County, Missouri, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Scott County, 33.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector (Urban Institute, Debt in America, August 2025). That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives Scott County's score
In Scott County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 86.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 282.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 89% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 71.1.
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.
Scott County does better than most counties on two measures: adults 25 to 54 not working (15.8%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, 12-month average (3.8%, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Scott 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.
- 86.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.6% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people282.4 · 202589th percentile
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- 71.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.0% · August 202572nd percentile
- People with a credit card behind6.0% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.5% · Q4 202581st percentile
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- 60.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line17.5% · 202451st percentile
- People with a disability16.6% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,671 · 202468th percentile
- People below the poverty line13.5% · 202452nd percentile
- People without health insurance10.7% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
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- 50.4 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 income20.3% · fiscal year 202746th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent18.9% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
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- 30.3 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average3.8% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202640th 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 Scott 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
Scott County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Scott County in 2024, pay from work was 53 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 15 cents. Benefit checks were 33 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 13 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Scott County, benefit checks rose from 13 to 33 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Scott County, Missouri: 32.5% and 52.7% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 32.5% of all personal income in Scott 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 Scott County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Scott County has changed
The number of people living in Scott County grew by about 13% between 1969 and 2024, from 33,709 to 37,957. The number of jobs located there grew by about 20% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 7.2% in 1990 to 4.0% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 33,709 | 2024 37,957 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 13,495 | 2024 16,179 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.6% | 2024 13.5% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $22,080 | 2024 $60,671 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 12.9% | 2024 32.5% |
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 Scott County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 40,422. The 2020 Census counted 38,059, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
1803
Commerce (Tywapitty) was an early French fur trading post that became an established river landing by 1803. Wikipedia
1820
Delaware (Lenape) and Shawnee people migrated into Scott County in the 1820s from territories east of the Mississippi. Wikipedia
1821
Created December 28, 1821. Wikipedia
1957
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage, three deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
1986
Tornado: $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Tornado: three deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
Tornado: $15 million in property damage, two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Scott County, 22 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Scott County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Scott County, in Missouri and Illinois, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Scott County ranks 5th of the six; Alexander County is highest, at 53.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi County, MO | 98 | 21.0% | 40.7% |
| New Madrid County, MO | 90 | 19.1% | 32.5% |
| Alexander County, IL | 88 | 24.8% | 53.2% |
| Stoddard County, MO | 70 | 14.8% | 34.9% |
| Scott County, MO | 66 | 13.5% | 32.5% |
| Cape Girardeau County, MO | 39 | 12.4% | 23.0% |
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 Scott County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Scott County's poverty rate was 13.5% in 2024, 67th 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, Scott County ranks 32nd of 115 in the state.
Scott County in photographs
Places in Scott County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Index to Aerial Photography of Scott County, Missouri 6 - DPLA - 5a5706cb2d8cd3736fb0f424cea113e7.jpg.
Scott County, Missouri: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Scott County, Missouri?
13.5% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in seven people. Among children it was 17.5%.
Is Scott County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Scott County's poverty rate was 13.5% in 2024, 67th 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, Scott County ranks 32nd of 115 in the state.
What is the population of Scott County, Missouri?
About 37,957 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 38,059, 94% of the county's peak of 40,422 in 2000.
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 Scott 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 Scott County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.