About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Howard County, Nebraska, have a job
In Howard County, 9.8% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Howard County's score
In Howard County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 42.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 2.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Howard 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.
Howard 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.
- 42.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.9% · second quarter of 202615th percentile
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- 28.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.5% · 202418th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.1% · 202423rd percentile
- People with a disability14.1% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- People without health insurance6.8% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,933 · 202431st percentile
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- 22.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.2% · August 202512th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people91.9 · 202531st percentile
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- 9.8 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 rent8.8% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.5% · fiscal year 20279th percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working9.8% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Howard 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 Howard County, 22.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Howard County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Howard County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 22.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Howard County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Howard County getting SNAP food aid moved most in three steps: 5.0% in 2009 to 6.3% in 2010; 6.6% in 2021 to 7.9% in 2022; 8.0% in 2023 to 6.7% in 2024.
The share of households in Howard County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 5.0% 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, Howard County, Nebraska.
How Howard County has changed
Howard County's population fell most sharply on the way to its 1989 low, from 6,622 in 1984 to 6,114 in 1989.
Howard County's population rose 6% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 6,767 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Howard County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Howard County had its largest rise, from 1,106 in 1995 to 1,314 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Howard County rose by more than half from 1990 to 2025, reaching 1,584
High on the chart: 1,622 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Howard County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.1% | 2025 2.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.1% | 2024 9.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,147 | 2024 $73,933 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Howard County's history
1870
Native American gathering place Indian Hill relocated in 1870. Wikipedia
1871
County boundaries defined by Nebraska Legislature on March 1, 1871, carved from northern section of Hall County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 10,783. The 2020 Census counted 6,475, 60% of the peak. Census Bureau
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
A tornado in May 1993 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
2024
A tornado in April 2024 did $3.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1966
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Howard County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Howard County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Howard County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Howard County ranks 4th of the seven; Sherman County is highest, at 27.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hall County, NE | 38 | 15.1% | 18.6% |
| Sherman County, NE | 11 | 11.6% | 27.2% |
| Greeley County, NE | 9 | 10.7% | 21.3% |
| Merrick County, NE | 7 | 9.8% | 22.7% |
| Buffalo County, NE | 6 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
| Howard County, NE | 6 | 9.5% | 22.2% |
| Nance County, NE | 4 | 10.9% | 27.2% |
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 Howard County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Howard County's poverty rate was 9.5% in 2024, 66th 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, Howard County ranks 72nd of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Howard 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.
Download the CSV for Howard 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 Howard County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.