Unemployment in Boyd County, Nebraska, is lower than in 90% of U.S. counties
In Boyd County, 2.8% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Boyd County's score
In Boyd County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 56.6. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 22.5. About three in ten people (31.1%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 83% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Boyd 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, Boyd County is worse off than most counties on adults 25 to 54 not working (27.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 56.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.1% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.9% · 202454th percentile
- People with a disability18.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance7.3% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,388 · 202466th percentile
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- 46.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20269th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.5% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
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- 42.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202516th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people173.9 · 202568th percentile
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- 28.0 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 rent11.2% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202740th percentile
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- 22.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202529th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202521st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.1% · second quarter of 202616th 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 Boyd 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 Boyd County, 31.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Boyd County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Boyd County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 30.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Boyd County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Boyd County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 4.5% in 2011 to 1.9% in 2012.
The share of households in Boyd County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2012, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 1.9% in 2012. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Boyd County, Nebraska.
How Boyd County has changed
Boyd County's population had its largest drop, from 3,237 in 1984 to 2,869 in 1989.
Boyd County's population fell by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 1,700, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 2009 to 2014, reaching 1,994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Boyd County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Boyd County fell 10% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 631 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Boyd County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.5% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.5% | 2024 13.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,528 | 2024 $61,388 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 2.8% 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 Boyd County's history
1891
Created August 1, 1891. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 8,826. The 2020 Census counted 1,810, 21% of the peak. Census Bureau
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flash flood in March 2019 did $12 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Boyd County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Boyd County beside its neighbors
Boyd County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Nebraska and South Dakota. Of the group, Boyd County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (30.8%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boyd County, NE | 31 | 13.1% | 30.8% |
| Gregory County, SD | 24 | 14.1% | 25.9% |
| Charles Mix County, SD | 20 | 20.3% | 25.6% |
| Keya Paha County, NE | 14 | 16.0% | 24.4% |
| Knox County, NE | 8 | 12.1% | 25.3% |
| Holt County, NE | 1 | 11.1% | 24.0% |
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 Boyd County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Boyd County's poverty rate was 13.1% in 2024, 15th 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, Boyd County ranks 14th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Boyd 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 Boyd County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.