About one in four people in Nye County, Nevada, has a disability
In Nye County, 25.8% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Nye County's score
In Nye County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 94.8. Unemployment averaged 6.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 94% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Nye 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.
Nye County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202694th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.4% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
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- 76.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.8% · August 202567th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people251.3 · 202585th percentile
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- 70.1 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 rent25.2% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd percentile
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- 67.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.8% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.8% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability25.8% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,910 · 202452nd percentile
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- 67.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.1% · August 202562nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.6% · second quarter of 202665th 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 Nye 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 Nye County, 30.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Nye County
Nevada
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Nye County had its largest rise, from 10.5% in 1989 to 17.3% in 1994.
In Nye County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about eight times its 1969 level, reaching 38.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Nye County, Nevada, benefit checks' share of income grew to about eight times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 38.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Nye County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (9.7% in 2009) to 13.3% in 2010.
The share of households in Nye County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 14.9%
Low on the chart: 9.7% 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, Nye County, Nevada.
How Nye County has changed
Nye County's population had its largest rise, from 22,347 in 1994 to 31,475 in 1999.
Nye County's population grew to more than ten times its 1969 size, reaching 55,990, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 55,990 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Nye County, Nevada.
The number of jobs located in Nye County had its largest rise, from 9,618 in 2000 to 12,074 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Nye County fell to its lowest on the chart in 1995, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 8,499 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Nye County, Nevada.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 6.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.9% | 2024 13.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $32,126 | 2024 $65,910 |
The table uses 6.6% for 2025; the score uses 6.3% 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 Nye County's history
1997
A flash flood in September 1997 did $2.7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Lightning in July 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 51,591, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 2005
5 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Nye County. FEMA
Nye County beside its neighbors
Nye County scores higher than all nine counties that border it, in Nevada and California. For the share of income from benefit checks, Nye County ranks 2nd of the 10; Mineral County is highest, at 42.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nye County, NV | 90 | 13.8% | 38.2% |
| Clark County, NV | 87 | 12.5% | 17.5% |
| Esmeralda County, NV | 84 | 14.8% | 27.2% |
| Mineral County, NV | 74 | 17.6% | 42.7% |
| Eureka County, NV | 66 | 11.1% | 18.4% |
| Churchill County, NV | 53 | 9.9% | 27.0% |
| Lincoln County, NV | 50 | 13.2% | 28.3% |
| Lander County, NV | 49 | 10.9% | 13.9% |
| White Pine County, NV | 48 | 12.6% | 24.5% |
| Inyo County, CA | 29 | 11.2% | 26.1% |
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 Nye County the poorest county in Nevada?
No, Nye County's poverty rate was 13.8% in 2024, 4th highest of 17 in Nevada (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Pershing County, at 18.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Nye County ranks 1st of 17 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Nye 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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Nevada Legal Services
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 Nye County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.