Unemployment in Ross County, Ohio, is higher than in 78% of U.S. counties
In Ross County, 4.9% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 78% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ross County's score
In Ross County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 83.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 268 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 87% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 78.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ross 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.
Ross County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.4%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (6.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.8% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people268 · 202587th percentile
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- 78.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.2% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.2% · second quarter of 202670th percentile
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- 77.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202681st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.1% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
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- 53.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.4% · 202451st percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability18.9% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance6.8% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,519 · 202447th percentile
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- 48.4 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 rent19.9% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.4% · fiscal year 202736th 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 Ross 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 Ross County, 17.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ross County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Ross County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 31.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Ross County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ross County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 21.3% in 2019 to 18.8% in 2020.
The share of households in Ross County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 14.3% 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, Ross County, Ohio.
How Ross County has changed
Ross County's population had its largest rise, from 61,520 in 1974 to 64,798 in 1979.
Ross County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 76,046
High on the chart: 77,862 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ross County, Ohio.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Ross County rose by about a third to 28,735, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 25,546. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ross County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.3% | 2025 5.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.4% | 2024 13.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,182 | 2024 $67,519 |
The table uses 5.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Ross County's history
1798
Formed August 20, 1798 by proclamation of Governor St. Clair, being the sixth county formed in the Northwest Territory. Wikipedia
1996
A flash flood in May 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
Lightning in June 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Lightning in June 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 78,064. The 2020 Census counted 77,093, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2018
A flood in March 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
Pixelle paper mill (formerly Glatfelter and Mead Paper) announced closure, employing about 800 people. Wikipedia
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Since 1968
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ross County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ross County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Ross County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ross County ranks 6th of the eight; Vinton County is highest, at 36.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pike County, OH | 90 | 19.1% | 35.3% |
| Jackson County, OH | 88 | 15.5% | 36.1% |
| Ross County, OH | 81 | 13.4% | 31.3% |
| Vinton County, OH | 69 | 16.8% | 36.4% |
| Fayette County, OH | 65 | 12.1% | 30.7% |
| Hocking County, OH | 60 | 13.2% | 33.0% |
| Highland County, OH | 55 | 14.6% | 31.4% |
| Pickaway County, OH | 48 | 9.3% | 22.5% |
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 Ross County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Ross County's poverty rate was 13.4% in 2024, 34th 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, Ross County ranks 6th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ross 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 Southeast and Central Ohio (LASCO)
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.
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 Ross County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.