Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Hardeman County, Tennessee
In Hardeman County, 40.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hardeman County's score
In Hardeman County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 94.2. People with a credit card behind: 11.2%, August 2025, higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 91.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hardeman 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.
Hardeman County does better than most counties on one measure: people without health insurance (7.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind11.2% · August 202597th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.4% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.5% · second quarter of 202691st percentile
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- 91.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.7% · August 202585th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people481.1 · 202598th percentile
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- 86.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202682nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
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- 81.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.5% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.5% · 202485th percentile
- People with a disability21.8% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance7.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,433 · 202496th percentile
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- 78.5 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 rent21.2% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.3% · fiscal year 202788th 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 Hardeman 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 Hardeman County, 18.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hardeman County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hardeman County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 40.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Hardeman County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 40.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hardeman County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 25.1% in 2015 to 22.4% in 2016.
The share of households in Hardeman County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 19.3%
Low on the chart: 17.5% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hardeman County, Tennessee.
How Hardeman County has changed
Hardeman County's population had its largest rise, from 25,396 in 1994 to 27,773 in 1999.
Hardeman County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2004 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 27,816 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hardeman County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hardeman County fell 14% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
High on the chart: 7,644 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hardeman County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.3% | 2024 21.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,046 | 2024 $45,433 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Hardeman County's history
1862
Battle of Hatchie Bridge casualties in Civil War October 5, 1862. Wikipedia
1952
A tornado in March 1952 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in November 1992 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in January 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 28,105. The 2020 Census counted 25,462, 91% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A tornado in May 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hardeman County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hardeman County beside its neighbors
Hardeman County scores higher than all eight counties that border it, in Tennessee and Mississippi. Of the group, Hardeman County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (40.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardeman County, TN | 98 | 21.5% | 40.0% |
| Haywood County, TN | 92 | 19.8% | 36.4% |
| Madison County, TN | 90 | 17.5% | 25.7% |
| Benton County, MS | 86 | 19.9% | 35.7% |
| McNairy County, TN | 77 | 16.7% | 39.8% |
| Alcorn County, MS | 73 | 15.4% | 33.0% |
| Tippah County, MS | 72 | 16.2% | 32.8% |
| Chester County, TN | 66 | 12.5% | 27.9% |
| Fayette County, TN | 43 | 9.3% | 17.6% |
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 Hardeman County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Hardeman County's poverty rate was 21.5% in 2024, 3rd 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, Hardeman County ranks 1st of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hardeman 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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West Tennessee Legal Services
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 Hardeman 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 Hardeman County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.