Tennessee County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 95 counties in Tennessee, scored 0–100 across five domains. A county's score is the share of U.S. counties it is more distressed than; the average Tennessee county scores 65.3. 38 counties score high, very high, or extreme.
Data: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts | Scores as of Aug 2026
Tennessee Snapshot
95 Counties Scored
65.3 Mean Score
66.8 Median Score
98 Hardeman County Most Distressed
1 Williamson County Least Distressed
9 extreme county distress10 very high county distress19 high county distress24 moderate-high county distress14 moderate county distress11 moderate-low county distress4 low-moderate county distress3 low county distress1 exceptionally low county distress
Score Label Distribution Tennessee County Map
Hardeman County is the most distressed of Tennessee's 95 counties
County Distress Index score for Tennessee's 95 counties, from green (least distressed, 0–29) to red (most distressed, 80–100). Data from 2024 to Aug 2026.
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Least distressed 0–2930–4950–6970–7980–100 Most distressed
County Distress Index score · data from 2024 to Aug 2026
Point to or tap a county for its rank and score. Click it, or tap it twice, to open its page.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Tennessee's 95 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Tennessee Counties
95 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Score Label | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 34 | Hardeman County | 98 | extreme county distress | Delinquency |
| 2 | 52 | Lauderdale County | 98 | extreme county distress | Default & Legal |
| 3 | 69 | Lake County | 97 | extreme county distress | Default & Legal |
| 4 | — | Shelby County | 95 | extreme county distress | Default & Legal |
| 5 | — | Hancock County | 94 | extreme county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 6 | — | Cocke County | 94 | extreme county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 7 | — | Haywood County | 92 | extreme county distress | Delinquency |
| 8 | — | Sequatchie County | 92 | extreme county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 9 | — | Madison County | 90 | extreme county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 10 | — | Carroll County | 88 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 11 | — | Carter County | 85 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 12 | — | Rhea County | 85 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 13 | — | Hardin County | 85 | very high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 14 | — | Grundy County | 84 | very high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 15 | — | Clay County | 84 | very high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 16 | — | Scott County | 83 | very high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 17 | — | Campbell County | 83 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 18 | — | Marion County | 82 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 19 | — | Hamblen County | 81 | very high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 20 | — | Weakley County | 79 | high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 21 | — | Henry County | 79 | high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 22 | — | Johnson County | 78 | high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 23 | — | Claiborne County | 78 | high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 24 | — | Polk County | 77 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 25 | — | DeKalb County | 77 | high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 26 | — | McNairy County | 77 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 27 | — | Benton County | 77 | high county distress | Labor |
| 28 | — | Union County | 76 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 29 | — | Monroe County | 75 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 30 | — | Perry County | 75 | high county distress | Labor |
| 31 | — | Dyer County | 74 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 32 | — | Greene County | 72 | high county distress | Labor |
| 33 | — | Meigs County | 72 | high county distress | Labor |
| 34 | — | Henderson County | 71 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 35 | — | McMinn County | 71 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 36 | — | Unicoi County | 71 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 37 | — | White County | 71 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 38 | — | Hawkins County | 71 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 39 | — | Jackson County | 69 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 40 | — | Morgan County | 69 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 41 | — | Lewis County | 69 | moderate-high county distress | Labor |
| 42 | — | Warren County | 69 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 43 | — | Grainger County | 69 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 44 | — | Crockett County | 68 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 45 | — | Fentress County | 68 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 46 | — | Gibson County | 68 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 47 | — | Bradley County | 68 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 48 | — | Chester County | 66 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 49 | — | Wayne County | 66 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 50 | — | Macon County | 66 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 51 | — | Decatur County | 65 | moderate-high county distress | Labor |
| 52 | — | Giles County | 65 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 53 | — | Lawrence County | 65 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 54 | — | Coffee County | 65 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 55 | — | Sullivan County | 64 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 56 | — | Obion County | 64 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 57 | — | Bledsoe County | 62 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 58 | — | Anderson County | 62 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 59 | — | Tipton County | 62 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 60 | — | Montgomery County | 62 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 61 | — | Putnam County | 60 | moderate-high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 62 | — | Pickett County | 60 | moderate-high county distress | Labor |
| 63 | — | Bedford County | 59 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 64 | — | Van Buren County | 58 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 65 | — | Cannon County | 57 | moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 66 | — | Overton County | 57 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 67 | — | Washington County | 56 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 68 | — | Davidson County | 56 | moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 69 | — | Sevier County | 55 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 70 | — | Hamilton County | 54 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 71 | — | Houston County | 54 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 72 | — | Jefferson County | 54 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 73 | — | Cumberland County | 54 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 74 | — | Humphreys County | 53 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 75 | — | Maury County | 52 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 76 | — | Lincoln County | 52 | moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 77 | — | Robertson County | 49 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 78 | — | Marshall County | 47 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 79 | — | Franklin County | 46 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 80 | — | Roane County | 44 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 81 | — | Knox County | 44 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 82 | — | Rutherford County | 43 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 83 | — | Fayette County | 43 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 84 | — | Hickman County | 42 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 85 | — | Trousdale County | 42 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 86 | — | Stewart County | 41 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 87 | — | Dickson County | 41 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 88 | — | Smith County | 38 | low-moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 89 | — | Cheatham County | 35 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 90 | — | Blount County | 33 | low-moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 91 | — | Sumner County | 32 | low-moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 92 | — | Loudon County | 29 | low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 93 | — | Moore County | 25 | low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 94 | — | Wilson County | 22 | low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 95 | 3,098 | Williamson County | 1 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, the domains are averaged, and that average is ranked against every U.S. county. So a county's score is the share of U.S. counties it is more distressed than. National ranks are shown only for the 100 most and 100 least distressed counties, because ranks in between move between updates. Counties with identical composite scores share a rank, marked T- for tied.
extreme county distress — 9 Tennessee counties
very high county distress — 10 Tennessee counties
high county distress — 19 Tennessee counties
moderate-high county distress — 24 Tennessee counties
moderate county distress — 14 Tennessee counties
moderate-low county distress — 11 Tennessee counties
low-moderate county distress — 4 Tennessee counties
low county distress — 3 Tennessee counties
very low county distress — 0 Tennessee counties
exceptionally low county distress — 1 Tennessee county
Urban Institute data: 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. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it.