About three in ten people in Pickett County, Tennessee, have a disability
In Pickett County, 29.7% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pickett County's score
In Pickett County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 89.5. About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 (31.8%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a higher share than in 92% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 73.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pickett 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.
Pickett County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (1.5%, August 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (2.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.8% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
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- 73.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.8% · 202469th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.5% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability29.7% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance6.3% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,519 · 202487th percentile
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- 46.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.8% · August 202548th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people117 · 202545th percentile
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- 37.0 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 rent2.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.7% · fiscal year 202769th percentile
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- 37.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.5% · August 202550th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.8% · second quarter of 202655th 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 Pickett 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 Pickett County, 28.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pickett County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Pickett County had its largest rise, from 17.3% in 1974 to 23.7% in 1979.
In Pickett County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 37.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Pickett County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pickett County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.9% in 2014 to 22.5% in 2015.
The share of households in Pickett County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.2% in 2013. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pickett County, Tennessee.
How Pickett County has changed
Pickett County's population rose by about a third to 5,108, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 4,242. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pickett County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Pickett County rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 889 in 2010 to 1,117 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Pickett County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 1,246 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pickett County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.7% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.7% | 2024 15.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,558 | 2024 $52,519 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Pickett County's history
1879
1879, created from sections of Overton and Fentress counties. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 6,213. The 2020 Census counted 5,001, 80% of the peak. Census Bureau
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A tornado in April 1998 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pickett County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pickett County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Pickett County, in Tennessee and Kentucky, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pickett County ranks 5th of the seven; Clinton County is highest, at 48.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne County, KY | 95 | 28.8% | 48.6% |
| Clinton County, KY | 90 | 21.4% | 48.8% |
| Clay County, TN | 84 | 19.7% | 34.5% |
| Scott County, TN | 83 | 17.7% | 41.0% |
| Fentress County, TN | 68 | 19.0% | 39.7% |
| Pickett County, TN | 60 | 15.8% | 37.0% |
| Overton County, TN | 57 | 13.5% | 32.3% |
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 Pickett County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Pickett County's poverty rate was 15.8% in 2024, 33rd 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, Pickett County ranks 62nd of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pickett 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 Pickett 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 Pickett County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.