Shelby County, Missouri

County Distress Index: Normal · 39.6 | 5,931 people · 94th most distressed in Missouri

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Shelby County, MO falls within the normal range for household financial distress at 39.6 — 2373rd nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Community Vulnerability, where health coverage gaps and disability rates are moderately elevated. Within Missouri, it ranks 94th of 115 counties. It scores lower than all 5 of its neighboring counties.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Shelby County's primary driver is Community Vulnerability at 63.2 — above the national median.

Community Vulnerability Primary driver 63.2
Uninsured Rate 65
Disability Rate 61
Income & Poverty 56.7
Poverty Rate 63
Income vs. State Median 50
Child Poverty Rate 57
Employment & Wages 28.2
Unemployment Rate 13
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 43
Business Formation Rate 29
Housing Cost Burden 25.5
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 13
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 9
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 31
Homeownership Rate 47
Rent-to-Income Ratio 28
Debt & Delinquency 24.3
Debt in Collections 32
Medical Debt 17
Student Loan Delinquency 59
Auto Loan Delinquency 13
Credit Card Delinquency 6
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 18

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Shelby County compares to its 5 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Shelby County
Shelby County, MO 39.6 Normal
Macon County, MO 50.4 Elevated +10.9
Knox County, MO 48.8 Normal +9.2
Lewis County, MO 47.6 Normal +8.0
Monroe County, MO 46.0 Normal +6.4
Marion County, MO 41.7 Normal +2.1

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Shelby County
Beaver County, UT 39.5 Normal -0.0
Greene County, IA 39.6 Normal +0.1
Chouteau County, MT 39.5 Normal -0.1
Ringgold County, IA 39.7 Normal +0.1
Reagan County, TX 39.7 Normal +0.1

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