About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Morgan County, Tennessee, are not working
In Morgan County, 28.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 69% of U.S. counties.
What drives Morgan County's score
In Morgan County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 74.3. About one in three people with a credit file (32.7%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a higher share than in 81% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 72.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Morgan 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.
Morgan County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.2%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.7% · August 202581st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people171.5 · 202567th percentile
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- 72.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.6% · 202473rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.9% · 202467th percentile
- People with a disability20.9% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,822 · 202468th percentile
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- 67.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202649th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.3% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
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- 59.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.6% · second quarter of 202654th percentile
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- 32.9 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 rent14.2% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202738th 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 Morgan 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 Morgan County, 18.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Morgan County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Morgan County had its largest rise, from 20.7% in 1989 to 27.4% in 1994.
In Morgan County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 30.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Morgan County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Morgan County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 20.7% in 2013 to 24.9% in 2014.
The share of households in Morgan County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2020 to 2021, reaching 18.2%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Morgan County, Tennessee.
How Morgan County has changed
Morgan County's population nearly doubled to 21,954, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 16,266. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Morgan County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Morgan County had its largest rise, from 2,536 in 2010 to 3,112 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Morgan County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 2,536 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Morgan County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.9% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.1% | 2024 16.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,715 | 2024 $60,822 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Morgan County's history
2002
A tornado in November 2002 killed seven people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 21,987. The 2020 Census counted 21,035, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
2025
A tornado in February 2025 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Morgan County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Morgan County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Morgan County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Morgan County ranks 4th of the six; Scott County is highest, at 41.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scott County, TN | 83 | 17.7% | 41.0% |
| Morgan County, TN | 69 | 16.6% | 30.7% |
| Fentress County, TN | 68 | 19.0% | 39.7% |
| Anderson County, TN | 62 | 11.5% | 24.4% |
| Cumberland County, TN | 54 | 13.2% | 37.5% |
| 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 Morgan County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Morgan County's poverty rate was 16.6% in 2024, 25th 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, Morgan County ranks 40th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Morgan 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 Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands
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 Morgan 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 Morgan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.