Unemployment in Perry County, Tennessee, is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Perry County, 6.1% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 75% of U.S. counties.
What drives Perry County's score
In Perry County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 86.3. Income and the safety net comes next, at 74.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Perry 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.
Perry County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a credit card behind (3.5%, August 2025) and people with a car or retail loan behind (3.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202694th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.1% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 74.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.9% · 202470th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.5% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability16.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- People without health insurance13.4% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,337 · 202481st percentile
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- 71.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.9% · August 202576th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people168.7 · 202566th percentile
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- 56.3 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 rent18.7% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202759th percentile
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- 38.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.7% · August 202528th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.4% · second quarter of 202667th 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 Perry 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 Perry County, 21.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Perry County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Perry County had its largest rise, from 31.9% in 2004 to 42.6% in 2009.
In Perry County, benefit checks brought in more than pay in one of the bars shown, but pay leads in 2024
In Perry County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.5%; 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 Perry County getting SNAP food aid fell to 13.3%, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2009 to 2010, reaching 18.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Perry County, Tennessee.
How Perry County has changed
Perry County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 8,318 in 2019 to 8,987 in 2024.
Perry County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8,987, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1999 to 2004, reaching 7,595. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Perry County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Perry County had its largest drop, from 2,501 in 2005 to 1,602 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Perry County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 39% since
High on the chart: 2,806 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Perry County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 5.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.6% | 2024 15.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,053 | 2024 $55,337 |
The table uses 5.5% for 2025; the score uses 6.1% 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 Perry County's history
1819
November 14, 1819, created from parts of Wayne, Hickman, and Humphreys counties. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 8,815. The 2020 Census counted 8,366, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
1999
A tornado in May 1999 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in May 2010 did $2.8 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A tornado in December 2015 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A thunderstorm in October 2019 did $1.07 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Perry County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Perry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Perry County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Perry County ranks 2nd of the seven; Benton County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benton County, TN | 77 | 17.0% | 39.7% |
| Perry County, TN | 75 | 15.9% | 35.5% |
| Lewis County, TN | 69 | 14.1% | 29.2% |
| Wayne County, TN | 66 | 18.8% | 34.6% |
| Decatur County, TN | 65 | 15.0% | 34.3% |
| Humphreys County, TN | 53 | 12.2% | 31.3% |
| Hickman County, TN | 42 | 13.2% | 27.7% |
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 Perry County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 15.9% in 2024, 32nd 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, Perry County ranks 30th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Perry 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.
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 Perry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.