About one in five people in Duplin County, North Carolina, lives below the poverty line
In Duplin County, 21.1% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 90% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 77% of U.S. counties.
What drives Duplin County's score
In Duplin County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 91.6. People with a car or retail loan behind: 11.5%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 82.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Duplin 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.
Duplin County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (76.7, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 91.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.3% · August 202592nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind11.5% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.1% · second quarter of 202686th percentile
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- 82.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.1% · 202490th percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.5% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability17.2% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- People without health insurance15.0% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,729 · 202479th percentile
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- 57.7 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 rent19.0% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.7% · fiscal year 202760th percentile
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- 56.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.1% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people76.7 · 202523rd percentile
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- 43.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202619th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.8% · 2020 to 202467th 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 Duplin 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 Duplin County, 19.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Duplin County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Duplin County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 28.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Duplin County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 28.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Duplin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 19.0% in 2019 to 16.3% in 2020.
The share of households in Duplin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 11.6% 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, Duplin County, North Carolina.
How Duplin County has changed
Duplin County's population had its largest drop, from 55,124 in 2014 to 49,438 in 2019.
Duplin County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 57,434 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Duplin County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Duplin County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 19,630, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 20,720 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Duplin County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.5% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.3% | 2024 21.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,312 | 2024 $56,729 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Duplin County's history
1750
Formed in 1750 from New Hanover County. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in March 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in April 1999 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 58,505. The 2020 Census counted 48,715, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
2018
A flood in September 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in September 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1984
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Duplin County. FEMA
Duplin County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Duplin County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Duplin County ranks 5th of the seven; Jones County is highest, at 35.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lenoir County, NC | 87 | 19.1% | 33.2% |
| Sampson County, NC | 82 | 19.1% | 31.5% |
| Wayne County, NC | 80 | 19.3% | 30.0% |
| Jones County, NC | 79 | 17.3% | 35.3% |
| Duplin County, NC | 77 | 21.1% | 28.4% |
| Onslow County, NC | 60 | 11.5% | 23.7% |
| Pender County, NC | 31 | 10.4% | 25.6% |
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 Duplin County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Duplin County's poverty rate was 21.1% in 2024, 7th highest of 100 in North Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Robeson County, at 23.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Duplin County ranks 27th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Duplin 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 North Carolina
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 Duplin 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 Duplin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.