Benefit checks make up 39 cents of every dollar of income in Johnson County, Tennessee
In Johnson County, 39.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Johnson County's score
In Johnson County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 86.2. The typical household earns $50,816 a year (2024), less than in 90% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 75.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Johnson 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.
Johnson County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (12.7%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a car or retail loan behind (3.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.2 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 line27.8% · 202487th percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance13.4% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,816 · 202490th percentile
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- 75.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.2% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
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- 74.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.3% · August 202582nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people168.7 · 202566th percentile
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- 50.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.0% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.8% · second quarter of 202669th percentile
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- 48.0 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 rent12.7% · 2020 to 202421st 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 Johnson 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 Johnson County, 23.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Johnson County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Johnson County had its largest rise, from 30.3% in 2004 to 34.9% in 2009.
In Johnson County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 39.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Johnson County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 39.0%; 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 Johnson County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 15.1%
Biggest drop: 2019 to 2020, reaching 18.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Johnson County, Tennessee.
How Johnson County has changed
Johnson County's population nearly doubled to 18,506, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 16,499. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Johnson County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Johnson County rose by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 4,187, with most of the change between 2010 and 2015
High on the chart: 4,250 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Johnson County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.3% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.1% | 2024 20.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,139 | 2024 $50,816 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Johnson County's history
1836
Created in 1836 from parts of Carter County. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 18,244. The 2020 Census counted 17,948, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $1 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $6.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Johnson County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Johnson County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Johnson County, in Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina, one scores higher. Of the group, Johnson County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (39.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carter County, TN | 85 | 16.1% | 34.5% |
| Johnson County, TN | 78 | 20.9% | 39.0% |
| Grayson County, VA | 65 | 17.6% | 38.5% |
| Sullivan County, TN | 64 | 15.7% | 27.8% |
| Washington County, VA | 46 | 11.7% | — |
| Avery County, NC | 36 | 15.8% | 28.0% |
| Watauga County, NC | 36 | 20.8% | 20.3% |
| Ashe County, NC | 33 | 15.5% | 34.0% |
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 Johnson County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Johnson 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, Johnson County ranks 22nd of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Johnson 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 Johnson 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 Johnson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.