About one in seven people in Hamilton County, Tennessee, lives below the poverty line
In Hamilton County, 14.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 60% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hamilton County's score
In Hamilton County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 75.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 345.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 57.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hamilton 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.
Hamilton County does better than most counties on two measures: median household income ($78,271, 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.3% · August 202557th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people345.4 · 202593rd percentile
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- 57.8 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 rent21.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.5% · fiscal year 202748th percentile
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- 51.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.1% · August 202562nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.2% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 49.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.5% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.0% · 202472nd percentile
- People with a disability13.7% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
- People without health insurance9.7% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$78,271 · 202422nd percentile
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- 29.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202625th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.9% · 2020 to 202432nd 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 Hamilton 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 Hamilton County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hamilton County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hamilton County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 19.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Hamilton County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hamilton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 12.0% in 2010 to 13.5% in 2011.
The share of households in Hamilton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 9.4%
Biggest drop: 2015 to 2016, reaching 14.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hamilton County, Tennessee.
How Hamilton County has changed
Hamilton County's population rose by about half to 386,256, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 386,256. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hamilton County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hamilton County rose 43% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 219,580. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hamilton County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.0% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.5% | 2024 14.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,829 | 2024 $78,271 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Hamilton County's history
1819
Formed October 25, 1819 from portions of Rhea County and Cherokee land. Wikipedia
1835
Cherokee forced removal by Treaty of New Echota 1835, opening former lands for settlement. Wikipedia
1861
Lookout Mountain Cave saltpeter mining during Civil War, operated by Robert Cravens. Wikipedia
1997
A tornado in March 1997 did $45 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $20 million in property damage and killed eight people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in March 2012 did $28 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 366,207, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
Heavy rain in August 2025 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hamilton County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hamilton County beside its neighbors
Of the 10 counties that border Hamilton County, in Tennessee and Georgia, eight score higher. Of the group, Hamilton County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Meigs County gets the largest, at 36.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sequatchie County, TN | 92 | 15.4% | 31.2% |
| Rhea County, TN | 85 | 14.0% | 32.9% |
| Marion County, TN | 82 | 13.8% | 29.0% |
| Walker County, GA | 75 | 12.8% | 30.8% |
| Meigs County, TN | 72 | 14.5% | 36.8% |
| Whitfield County, GA | 69 | 14.4% | 22.9% |
| Bradley County, TN | 68 | 11.6% | 25.6% |
| Bledsoe County, TN | 62 | 19.4% | 32.4% |
| Hamilton County, TN | 54 | 14.5% | 19.6% |
| Catoosa County, GA | 53 | 10.4% | 24.2% |
| Dade County, GA | 49 | 11.6% | 28.8% |
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 Hamilton County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Hamilton County's poverty rate was 14.5% in 2024, 44th 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, Hamilton County ranks 70th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hamilton 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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CCCS of Rochester-chattanooga
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
Download the CSV for Hamilton 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 Hamilton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.