About one in 16 people in St. Charles County, Missouri, lives below the poverty line
In St. Charles County, 6.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives St. Charles County's score
In St. Charles County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 46.5. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 6.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in St. Charles 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.
St. Charles County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 46.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.7% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people187.2 · 202571st percentile
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- 30.5 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 rent19.1% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th percentile
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- 17.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202517th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.6% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.7% · second quarter of 20267th percentile
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- 13.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202622nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.3% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
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- 6.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.3% · 20242nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.2% · 20242nd percentile
- People with a disability11.7% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- People without health insurance4.2% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$103,890 · 20244th 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 St. Charles 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 St. Charles County, 17.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
St. Charles County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In St. Charles County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 15.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In St. Charles County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in St. Charles County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 4.4% in 2011 to 5.2% in 2012.
The share of households in St. Charles County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 3.1% 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, St. Charles County, Missouri.
How St. Charles County has changed
St. Charles County's population had its largest rise, from 164,585 in 1984 to 207,528 in 1989.
St. Charles County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 423,726, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 401,665. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, St. Charles County, Missouri.
The number of jobs located in St. Charles County had its largest rise, from 95,919 in 2000 to 117,022 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in St. Charles County more than doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 162,655, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 120,366. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, St. Charles County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.7% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 3.9% | 2024 6.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $41,555 | 2024 $103,890 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 St. Charles County's history
2001
Hail in April 2001 did $100 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
Hail in April 2001 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
Hail in April 2001 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A tornado in May 2013 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 405,262, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered St. Charles County, 20 of them for flooding. FEMA
St. Charles County beside its neighbors
All seven counties that border St. Charles County, in Missouri and Illinois, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, St. Charles County ranks 7th of the eight; Calhoun County is highest, at 27.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madison County, IL | 40 | 9.6% | 22.8% |
| St. Louis County, MO | 40 | 9.8% | 13.1% |
| Franklin County, MO | 31 | 9.0% | 24.0% |
| Lincoln County, MO | 29 | 7.9% | 21.2% |
| Jersey County, IL | 26 | 9.5% | 25.4% |
| Warren County, MO | 25 | 8.0% | 22.9% |
| Calhoun County, IL | 15 | 10.0% | 27.3% |
| St. Charles County, MO | 7 | 6.3% | 15.6% |
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 St. Charles County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, St. Charles County's poverty rate was 6.3% in 2024, 114th 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, St. Charles County ranks 114th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in St. Charles 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 St. Charles 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 St. Charles County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.