About one in 12 people in Fulton County, Ohio, lives below the poverty line
In Fulton County, 8.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Fulton County's score
In Fulton County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 43.4. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 22.4. About one in eight renters (12.6%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 79% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Fulton 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.
Fulton 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.
- 43.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.5% · August 202524th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people157.1 · 202562nd percentile
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- 42.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202659th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.8% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
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- 31.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.6% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.6% · second quarter of 202624th percentile
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- 22.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.3% · 202410th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.4% · 202415th percentile
- People with a disability14.8% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- People without health insurance5.1% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,421 · 202428th percentile
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- 22.4 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 rent12.6% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.2% · fiscal year 202724th 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 Fulton 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 Fulton County, 19.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Fulton County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Fulton County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 23.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Fulton County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Fulton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 8.0% in 2023 to 9.6% in 2024.
The share of households in Fulton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 9.6%
Low on the chart: 5.9% 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, Fulton County, Ohio.
How Fulton County has changed
Fulton County's population had its largest rise, from 32,665 in 1969 to 35,959 in 1974.
Fulton County's population rose 29% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 42,846 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Fulton County, Ohio.
The number of jobs located in Fulton County had its largest drop, from 21,268 in 2005 to 17,011 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Fulton County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 21,518 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Fulton County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.9% | 2024 8.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,588 | 2024 $75,421 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Fulton County's history
1839
Ottawa tribe chief Wauseon forced by federal government to forfeit tribe's land and move to Oklahoma in 1839. Wikipedia
1972
A tornado in June 1972 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in June 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in July 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 42,713, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Fulton County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Fulton County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Fulton County, in Ohio and Michigan, four score higher. Of the group, Fulton County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Hillsdale County gets the largest, at 30.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucas County, OH | 79 | 16.8% | 25.5% |
| Hillsdale County, MI | 53 | 12.8% | 30.3% |
| Lenawee County, MI | 46 | 9.6% | 27.7% |
| Williams County, OH | 43 | 10.3% | 27.1% |
| Fulton County, OH | 20 | 8.3% | 23.5% |
| Henry County, OH | 19 | 7.9% | 25.9% |
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 Fulton County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Fulton County's poverty rate was 8.3% in 2024, 76th highest of 88 in Ohio (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Athens County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Fulton County ranks 76th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Fulton 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 Western Ohio (LAWO)
Legal aid
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Ohio Legal Help
Legal help website
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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 Fulton 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 Fulton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.