Unemployment in Macon County, North Carolina, is lower than in 71% of U.S. counties
In Macon County, 3.5% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 71% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Macon County's score
In Macon County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 61.8. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 23.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 36.4 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Macon 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.
Even so, Macon County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (13.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.2% · 202441st percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.9% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability15.4% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- People without health insurance13.7% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,888 · 202473rd percentile
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- 53.5 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 rent19.3% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th percentile
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- 46.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.7% · second quarter of 202640th percentile
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- 34.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.9% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
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- 23.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.2% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people36.4 · 20254th 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 Macon 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 Macon County, 29.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Macon County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Macon County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 32.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Macon County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Macon County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.9% in 2012 to 16.4% in 2013.
The share of households in Macon County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 8.9% 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, Macon County, North Carolina.
How Macon County has changed
Macon County's population had its largest rise, from 25,459 in 1994 to 29,252 in 1999.
Macon County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38,717, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 34,306. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Macon County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Macon County nearly doubled to 12,592, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 10,448. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Macon County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.6% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.1% | 2024 12.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,570 | 2024 $58,888 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Macon County's history
1828
Formed in 1828 from the western part of Haywood County. Wikipedia
2010
Lightning in May 2010 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 37,014, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Macon County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Macon County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Macon County, in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Macon County ranks 5th of the eight; Cherokee County is highest, at 45.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graham County, NC | 77 | 16.4% | 38.7% |
| Swain County, NC | 63 | 15.6% | 38.0% |
| Oconee County, SC | 52 | 16.1% | 27.3% |
| Jackson County, NC | 50 | 16.9% | 29.1% |
| Cherokee County, NC | 49 | 15.4% | 45.0% |
| Clay County, NC | 43 | 11.5% | 41.5% |
| Macon County, NC | 39 | 12.2% | 32.6% |
| Rabun County, GA | 37 | 11.7% | 29.9% |
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 Macon County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Macon County's poverty rate was 12.2% in 2024, 75th 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, Macon County ranks 80th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Macon 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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Pisgah Legal Services
Legal aid
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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.
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 Macon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.