About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Phelps County, Nebraska, have a job
In Phelps County, 10.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Phelps County's score
In Phelps County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 33.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 2.3%, 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 Phelps 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.
Phelps 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.
- 33.6 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent20.1% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.5% · fiscal year 20275th or lower percentile
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- 28.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.6% · August 202510th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people121.5 · 202547th percentile
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- 21.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.4% · 202410th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.5% · 202415th percentile
- People with a disability13.1% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.2% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$78,735 · 202422nd percentile
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- 12.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.4% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.5% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.0% · second quarter of 202622nd 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 year2.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working10.3% · 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 Phelps 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 Phelps County, 21.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Phelps County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Phelps County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Phelps County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Phelps County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.9% in 2021 to 12.2% in 2022.
The share of households in Phelps County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 4.7% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Phelps County, Nebraska.
How Phelps County has changed
Phelps County's population fell 6% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 2004 and 2009
High on the chart: 10,027 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Phelps County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Phelps County rose 15% 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 4,659. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Phelps County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.1% | 2025 2.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.2% | 2024 8.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,551 | 2024 $78,735 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Phelps County's history
1873
Formed in 1873. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 10,772. The 2020 Census counted 8,968, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
1941
Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District began its power production and irrigation operations and water flowed into Phelps County for irrigation in 1941. Wikipedia
1960
A tornado in June 1960 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1988
A tornado in June 1988 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
Hail in May 1998 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
Hail in May 2024 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Phelps County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Phelps County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Phelps County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Phelps County ranks 4th of the seven; Furnas County is highest, at 32.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furnas County, NE | 33 | 13.2% | 32.3% |
| Dawson County, NE | 26 | 10.1% | 20.8% |
| Buffalo County, NE | 6 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
| Harlan County, NE | 5 | 10.3% | 24.2% |
| Phelps County, NE | 5 | 8.4% | 21.6% |
| Gosper County, NE | 4 | 8.9% | 25.2% |
| Kearney County, NE | 3 | 7.8% | 15.7% |
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 Phelps County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Phelps County's poverty rate was 8.4% in 2024, 80th 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, Phelps County ranks 74th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Phelps 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 Phelps 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 Phelps County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.