Unemployment in Clarendon County, South Carolina, is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties
In Clarendon County, 6.0% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clarendon County's score
In Clarendon County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 92.1. Jobs come next, at 89.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clarendon 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.
Clarendon County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.1%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.0%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 92.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.0% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.9% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score57.8% · second quarter of 202693rd percentile
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- 89.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202694th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.7% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
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- 77.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector38.7% · August 202592nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people154.8 · 202561st percentile
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- 71.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.4% · 202477th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.4% · 202480th percentile
- People with a disability16.6% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- People without health insurance9.0% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,106 · 202486th percentile
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- 40.0 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd 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 Clarendon 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 Clarendon County, 24.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Clarendon County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Clarendon County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 37.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Clarendon County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Clarendon County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 21.1% in 2011 to 24.9% in 2012.
The share of households in Clarendon County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 17.1%
Biggest drop: 2020 to 2021, reaching 20.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Clarendon County, South Carolina.
How Clarendon County has changed
Clarendon County's population had its largest rise, from 29,822 in 1994 to 32,247 in 1999.
Clarendon County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 34,942 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clarendon County, South Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Clarendon County had its largest rise, from 6,829 in 1995 to 8,183 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Clarendon County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 8,183 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clarendon County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.5% | 2025 6.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 31.5% | 2024 17.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,637 | 2024 $53,106 |
The table uses 6.1% for 2025; the score uses 6.0% 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 Clarendon County's history
1785
Officially established in 1785, shortly after the American Revolutionary War, when legislature divided Camden District into seven counties. Wikipedia
1941
Lake Marion created as reservoir by construction of Santee Dam by United States Corps of Engineers in November 1941, part of Santee-Cooper Hydroelectric and Navigation Project for rural electrification under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal. Wikipedia
1958
A tornado in April 1958 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A thunderstorm in March 1984 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1988
A tornado in August 1988 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 34,971. The 2020 Census counted 31,144, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
2026
A thunderstorm in May 2026 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1989
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clarendon County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clarendon County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Clarendon County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clarendon County ranks 2nd of the seven; Williamsburg County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Williamsburg County, SC | 99 | 25.5% | 39.0% |
| Orangeburg County, SC | 96 | 21.0% | 37.0% |
| Sumter County, SC | 93 | 16.7% | 31.3% |
| Florence County, SC | 89 | 17.5% | 27.7% |
| Clarendon County, SC | 89 | 17.4% | 37.8% |
| Calhoun County, SC | 88 | 14.8% | 28.0% |
| Berkeley County, SC | 58 | 8.9% | 19.1% |
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 Clarendon County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Clarendon County's poverty rate was 17.4% in 2024, 16th highest of 46 in South Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Allendale County, at 31.6%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Clarendon County ranks 17th of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clarendon 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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South Carolina Legal Services
Legal aid
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Pro Bono Legal Services — SC Bar
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 Clarendon 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 Clarendon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.