Benefit checks make up 37 cents of every dollar of income in Gallia County, Ohio
In Gallia County, 37.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 87% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Gallia County's score
In Gallia County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 79.6. About three in ten children (28.3%, 2024) live below the poverty line, a higher share than in 89% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 72.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Gallia 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.
Gallia County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.6%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a car or retail loan behind (5.2%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.1% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.3% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability20.2% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- People without health insurance8.7% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,723 · 202483rd percentile
-
- 72.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.3% · August 202565th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people220.8 · 202579th percentile
-
- 67.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.2% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.4% · second quarter of 202673rd percentile
-
- 67.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202660th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.1% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
-
- 51.8 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 rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.0% · fiscal year 202762nd percentile
-
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 Gallia 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 Gallia 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
Gallia County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Gallia County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 37.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Gallia County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Gallia County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 15.9% in 2010 to 19.4% in 2011.
The share of households in Gallia County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 15.9% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Gallia County, Ohio.
How Gallia County has changed
Gallia County's population rose 14% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1974 and 1979
High on the chart: 31,156 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Gallia County, Ohio.
The number of jobs located in Gallia County had its largest rise, from 10,180 in 1995 to 11,998 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Gallia County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 12,356 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Gallia County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.2% | 2025 5.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.9% | 2024 20.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,239 | 2024 $54,723 |
The table uses 5.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Gallia County's history
1803
Formed March 25, 1803 from portions of Adams and Washington counties. Wikipedia
1893
Asylum for Epileptics and Epileptic Insane opened November 30, 1893, later Gallipolis Developmental Center. Wikipedia
1967
Silver Bridge connecting Gallipolis to Point Pleasant collapsed December 15, 1967, killing 46 people. Wikipedia
1980
A tornado in June 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 31,069. The 2020 Census counted 29,220, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
2002
A tornado in May 2002 did $3.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
Heavy rain in March 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A flood in February 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1968
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Gallia County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Gallia County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Gallia County, in Ohio and West Virginia, two score higher. Of the group, Gallia County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (37.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County, OH | 88 | 15.5% | 36.1% |
| Cabell County, WV | 81 | 17.2% | 29.0% |
| Gallia County, OH | 80 | 20.1% | 37.0% |
| Meigs County, OH | 79 | 14.9% | 35.9% |
| Lawrence County, OH | 78 | 15.0% | 34.9% |
| Vinton County, OH | 69 | 16.8% | 36.4% |
| Mason County, WV | 61 | 16.3% | 36.4% |
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 Gallia County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Gallia County's poverty rate was 20.1% in 2024, 2nd 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, Gallia County ranks 7th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Gallia 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.
-
Legal Aid of Southeast and Central Ohio (LASCO)
Legal aid
-
Ohio Legal Help
Legal help website
-
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 Gallia 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 Gallia County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.