Unemployment in Stokes County, North Carolina, is lower than in 70% of U.S. counties
In Stokes County, 3.5% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 70% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Stokes County's score
In Stokes County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 62.0. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 41.2. People with a car or retail loan behind: 4.2%, August 2025, lower than in 65% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Stokes 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, Stokes County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (20.1%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (23.7%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 62.0 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 rent17.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.7% · fiscal year 202776th percentile
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- 51.4 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 202632nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.3% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
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- 50.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.8% · 202438th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.1% · 202439th percentile
- People with a disability20.1% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance7.6% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,343 · 202448th percentile
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- 44.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.6% · August 202544th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people116.4 · 202544th percentile
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- 41.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.2% · August 202545th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.2% · August 202535th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.2% · second quarter of 202642nd 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 Stokes 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 Stokes County, 23.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Stokes County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Stokes County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 32.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Stokes County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 32.2%; 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 Stokes County getting SNAP food aid rose by about a third to 14.8%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2013 to 2014, reaching 13.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Stokes County, North Carolina.
How Stokes County has changed
Stokes County's population had its largest rise, from 24,040 in 1969 to 28,322 in 1974.
Stokes County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 45,857
High on the chart: 47,422 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Stokes County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Stokes County rose by about a third to 7,553, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 6,712. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Stokes County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.2% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.4% | 2024 11.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,445 | 2024 $67,343 |
The table uses 3.7% 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 Stokes County's history
1789
Formed in 1789 from Surry County. Wikipedia
1865
Moratock Iron Furnace destroyed April 1865. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 47,401. The 2020 Census counted 44,520, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
2017
A tornado in May 2017 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in October 2018 did $1.45 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A flash flood in February 2020 did $1.07 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Stokes County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Stokes County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Stokes County, in North Carolina and Virginia, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Stokes County ranks 3rd of the five; Patrick County is highest, at 40.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry County, VA | 85 | 16.0% | — |
| Rockingham County, NC | 74 | 17.2% | 33.3% |
| Surry County, NC | 61 | 16.7% | 30.4% |
| Forsyth County, NC | 60 | 13.3% | 22.1% |
| Patrick County, VA | 60 | 16.6% | 40.1% |
| Stokes County, NC | 49 | 11.8% | 32.2% |
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 Stokes County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Stokes County's poverty rate was 11.8% in 2024, 78th 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, Stokes County ranks 63rd of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Stokes 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 Stokes 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 Stokes County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.