About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Adams County, Nebraska, have a job
In Adams County, 12.7% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 77% of U.S. counties.
What drives Adams County's score
In Adams County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 53.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 9.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Adams 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, Adams County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (24.5%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (216.8, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 53.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.3% · August 202527th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people216.8 · 202578th percentile
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- 47.3 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 rent24.5% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.4% · fiscal year 20279th percentile
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- 30.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.9% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.1% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.8% · second quarter of 202632nd percentile
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- 29.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.0% · 202430th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.7% · 202426th percentile
- People with a disability14.2% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- People without health insurance5.8% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,092 · 202430th percentile
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- 9.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202610th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.7% · 2020 to 20247th 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 Adams 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 Adams County, 18.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Adams County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Adams County made its largest gain on the way to its 2019 high, from 17.7% in 2014 to 20.3% in 2019.
In Adams County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 20.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Adams County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (7.3% in 2009) to 8.9% in 2010.
The share of households in Adams County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 9.1%
Low on the chart: 7.3% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Adams County, Nebraska.
How Adams County has changed
Adams County's population fell most sharply on the way to its 1989 low, from 30,847 in 1984 to 29,901 in 1989.
Adams County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 31,323 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Adams County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Adams County rose 11% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 14,948. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Adams County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.8% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.2% | 2024 11.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,957 | 2024 $74,092 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Adams County's history
1867
February 16, 1867 (created) December 12, 1871 (organized). Wikipedia
1943
Hastings operated largest Naval Ammunition Depot in the United States during World War II. Wikipedia
1964
A tornado in May 1964 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Hail in May 2005 did $40 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 31,364. The 2020 Census counted 31,205, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2019
Lightning in May 2019 did $19 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2022
Hail in June 2022 did $12 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Adams County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Adams County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Adams County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Adams County ranks 3rd of the seven; Webster County is highest, at 26.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hall County, NE | 38 | 15.1% | 18.6% |
| Adams County, NE | 22 | 11.0% | 20.1% |
| Webster County, NE | 21 | 10.8% | 26.0% |
| Buffalo County, NE | 6 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
| Kearney County, NE | 3 | 7.8% | 15.7% |
| Clay County, NE | 0 | 9.6% | 21.5% |
| Hamilton County, NE | 0 | 6.6% | 17.8% |
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 Adams County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Adams County's poverty rate was 11.0% in 2024, 45th highest of 93 in Nebraska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Garden County, at 16.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Adams County ranks 21st of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Adams 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 Aid of Nebraska
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.
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 Adams County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.