Unemployment in Wheeler County, Nebraska, is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties
In Wheeler County, 2.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wheeler County's score
In Wheeler County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 40.0. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wheeler 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.
Wheeler 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.
- 40.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.4% · 202434th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.3% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability13.6% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- People without health insurance9.0% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,058 · 202449th percentile
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- 30.4 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 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202544th percentile
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- 18.7 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 score21.4% · second quarter of 20265th or lower percentile
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- 14.2 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 rent2.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.2% · fiscal year 202723rd 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 year2.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.4% · 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 Wheeler 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 Wheeler County, 29.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wheeler County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Wheeler County had its largest drop, from 14.2% in 1979 to 4.0% in 1984.
In Wheeler County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 19.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Wheeler County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Wheeler County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 2.8%
Low on the chart: 1.2% 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, Wheeler County, Nebraska.
How Wheeler County has changed
Wheeler County's population had its largest drop, from 1,044 in 1984 to 948 in 1989.
Wheeler County's population fell 28% from 1969 to 2019, then turned up in 2024
High on the chart: 1,067 in 1969. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wheeler County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Wheeler County had its largest rise, from 233 in 1995 to 271 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Wheeler County fell to its lowest on the chart in 1995, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 233 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wheeler County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.1% | 2025 2.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.5% | 2024 11.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,314 | 2024 $67,058 |
The table uses 2.5% for 2025; the score uses 2.2% 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 Wheeler County's history
1877
February 17, 1877 (created) April 11, 1881 (organized). Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 2,531. The 2020 Census counted 774, 31% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A flash flood in June 2010 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 2005
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wheeler County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wheeler County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Wheeler County, four score higher. Of the group, Wheeler County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Garfield County gets the largest, at 31.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greeley County, NE | 9 | 10.7% | 21.3% |
| Valley County, NE | 9 | 10.8% | 22.7% |
| Garfield County, NE | 8 | 11.8% | 31.1% |
| Antelope County, NE | 8 | 11.4% | 21.2% |
| Wheeler County, NE | 6 | 11.4% | 19.2% |
| Holt County, NE | 1 | 11.1% | 24.0% |
| Boone County, NE | 0 | 9.3% | 21.7% |
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 Wheeler County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Wheeler County's poverty rate was 11.4% in 2024, 36th 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, Wheeler County ranks 71st of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wheeler 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 Wheeler 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 Wheeler County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.