About one in five people in Jefferson County, Tennessee, has a disability
In Jefferson County, 19.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jefferson County's score
In Jefferson County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 78.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 274.9 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 88% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 54.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jefferson 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.
Jefferson County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.7%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.0% · August 202567th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people274.9 · 202588th percentile
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- 54.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.9% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.8% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.1% · second quarter of 202660th percentile
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- 54.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.1% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.4% · 202446th percentile
- People with a disability19.0% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance9.0% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,911 · 202449th percentile
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- 39.9 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 rent14.7% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.7% · fiscal year 202750th percentile
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- 37.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202632nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.5% · 2020 to 202442nd 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 Jefferson 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 Jefferson County, 20.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jefferson County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Jefferson County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 23.6% in 2004 to 30.4% in 2009.
In Jefferson County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 29.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Jefferson County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Jefferson County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2020 to 2021, reaching 12.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jefferson County, Tennessee.
How Jefferson County has changed
Jefferson County's population more than doubled to 59,217, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 43,611. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jefferson County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Jefferson County rose by about half to 13,797, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 12,829. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jefferson County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.4% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.2% | 2024 12.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,859 | 2024 $66,911 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Jefferson County's history
1792
Established June 11, 1792 by William Blount, Governor of the Southwest Territory. Wikipedia
1942
Douglas Dam construction in 1942 threatened to flood downtown Dandridge. Wikipedia
2011
A flood in February 2011 did $2.19 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Multi-vehicle collision October 2, 2013 on I-40 near I-81 split with church bus, tractor-trailer, and SUV killed 8 people, injured 14. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 54,683, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jefferson County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jefferson County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Jefferson County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jefferson County ranks 3rd of the six; Cocke County is highest, at 38.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cocke County, TN | 94 | 20.9% | 38.5% |
| Hamblen County, TN | 81 | 14.8% | 27.5% |
| Grainger County, TN | 69 | 14.2% | 31.6% |
| Sevier County, TN | 55 | 13.2% | 22.1% |
| Jefferson County, TN | 54 | 12.1% | 29.4% |
| Knox County, TN | 44 | 12.8% | 16.6% |
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 Jefferson County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Jefferson County's poverty rate was 12.1% in 2024, 74th 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, Jefferson County ranks 72nd of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jefferson 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.
Download the CSV for Jefferson 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 Jefferson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.