About one in four people in Cocke County, Tennessee, has a disability
In Cocke County, 23.1% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cocke County's score
In Cocke County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 89.9. About one in three children (32.9%, 2024) lives below the poverty line, a higher share than in 94% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 86.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cocke 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.
Cocke County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.9% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line32.9% · 202494th percentile
- People with a disability23.1% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance12.7% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,830 · 202490th percentile
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- 86.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector36.6% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people240.6 · 202583rd percentile
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- 85.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.7% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.7% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.4% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 77.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202674th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.6% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 56.8 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 rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.5% · fiscal year 202774th 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 Cocke 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 Cocke County, 22.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cocke County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cocke County had its largest rise, from 29.9% in 2004 to 37.2% in 2009.
In Cocke County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 29% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Cocke County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cocke County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 20.6% in 2009 to 24.1% in 2010.
The share of households in Cocke County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 18.6% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Cocke County, Tennessee.
How Cocke County has changed
Cocke County's population rose by about half to 37,596, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 27,674. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cocke County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Cocke County had its largest rise, from 7,175 in 1990 to 8,834 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Cocke County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 8,834 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cocke County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.5% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.6% | 2024 20.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,900 | 2024 $50,830 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Cocke County's history
1797
Established October 9, 1797, from a portion of Greene County by an act of the Tennessee General Assembly. Wikipedia
1963
A tornado in March 1963 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in February 1976 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 35,999, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
A flood in September 2024 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cocke County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cocke County beside its neighbors
Cocke County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Tennessee and North Carolina. Of the group, Cocke County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (38.5%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cocke County, TN | 94 | 20.9% | 38.5% |
| Hamblen County, TN | 81 | 14.8% | 27.5% |
| Greene County, TN | 72 | 16.3% | 36.1% |
| Madison County, NC | 56 | 14.9% | 33.4% |
| Sevier County, TN | 55 | 13.2% | 22.1% |
| Jefferson County, TN | 54 | 12.1% | 29.4% |
| Haywood County, NC | 50 | 13.6% | 32.2% |
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 Cocke County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Cocke County's poverty rate was 20.9% in 2024, 4th highest of 95 in Tennessee (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lake County, at 31.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cocke County ranks 6th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cocke 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 East Tennessee
Legal aid
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Tennessee Justice Center
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.
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 Cocke County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.