About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Meigs County, Tennessee, are not working
In Meigs County, 29.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 87% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 72% of U.S. counties.
What drives Meigs County's score
In Meigs County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 84.4. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 82.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Meigs 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.
Meigs County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (1.7%, August 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.4 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202680th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.3% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
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- 82.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.6% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people365.2 · 202594th percentile
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- 70.4 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 line20.5% · 202466th percentile
- People with a disability21.7% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance10.6% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,354 · 202466th percentile
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- 43.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.7% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.1% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
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- 36.7 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 rent13.8% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.4% · fiscal year 202747th 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 Meigs 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 Meigs County, 21.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Meigs County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Meigs County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 36.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Meigs County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.8%; 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 Meigs County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2016 to 2017, reaching 21.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Meigs County, Tennessee.
How Meigs County has changed
Meigs County's population had its largest rise, from 9,232 in 1994 to 10,899 in 1999.
Meigs County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 13,937, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 11,826. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Meigs County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Meigs County had its largest rise, from 1,454 in 1995 to 1,777 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Meigs County was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 2,138 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Meigs County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.3% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 14.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,069 | 2024 $61,354 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 5.0% 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 Meigs County's history
1838
Cherokee crossed Tennessee River at Blythe Ferry during forced removal to Indian Territory. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in May 1953 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 did $9.31 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 12,758, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Meigs County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Meigs County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Meigs County, one scores higher. Of the group, Meigs County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (36.8%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhea County, TN | 85 | 14.0% | 32.9% |
| Meigs County, TN | 72 | 14.5% | 36.8% |
| McMinn County, TN | 71 | 13.7% | 31.6% |
| Bradley County, TN | 68 | 11.6% | 25.6% |
| Hamilton County, TN | 54 | 14.5% | 19.6% |
| Roane County, TN | 44 | 12.1% | 29.2% |
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 Meigs County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Meigs 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, Meigs County ranks 33rd of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Meigs 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 Meigs County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.