In Andrews County, Texas, benefit checks make up only 15 cents of every dollar of income
In Andrews County, 14.9% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Andrews County's score
In Andrews County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 73.8. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 36.5. The typical household earns $89,424 a year (2024), more than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Andrews 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.
Even so, Andrews County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (22.4%, 2020 to 2024) and people with unpaid debt sent to a collector (39.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.3% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.0% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.7% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 50.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202627th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
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- 49.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.4% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people26.8 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 36.6 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 rent18.8% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.8% · fiscal year 202719th percentile
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- 36.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.5% · 202426th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.9% · 202427th percentile
- People with a disability13.0% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- People without health insurance22.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$89,424 · 202411th 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 Andrews 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 Andrews County, 9.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Andrews County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Andrews County had its largest drop, from 16.5% in 2009 to 10.0% in 2014.
In Andrews County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 14.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Andrews County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Andrews County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.7% in 2022 to 11.3% in 2023.
The share of households in Andrews County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2019, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 6.4% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Andrews County, Texas.
How Andrews County has changed
Andrews County's population doubled to 18,923, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 15,752. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Andrews County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Andrews County had its largest rise, from 5,348 in 2010 to 7,462 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Andrews County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2000, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 4,250 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Andrews County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.6% | 2024 10.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,105 | 2024 $89,424 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Andrews County's history
1876
Created August 21, 1876 from Tom Green County and organized in 1910. Wikipedia
1995
Hail in June 1995 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
Hail in April 1999 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 18,610, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1998
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Andrews County. FEMA
Andrews County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Andrews County, in Texas and New Mexico, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Andrews County ranks 4th of the seven; Lea County is highest, at 19.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ector County, TX | 78 | 14.8% | 15.2% |
| Lea County, NM | 73 | 15.7% | 19.0% |
| Midland County, TX | 53 | 11.2% | 5.6% |
| Andrews County, TX | 48 | 10.5% | 14.9% |
| Winkler County, TX | 43 | 14.3% | 15.1% |
| Martin County, TX | 43 | 12.1% | 11.0% |
| Gaines County, TX | 33 | 12.2% | 14.2% |
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 Andrews County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Andrews County's poverty rate was 10.5% in 2024, 217th highest of 254 in Texas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Starr County, at 35.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Andrews County ranks 185th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Andrews 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 NorthWest Texas
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 Andrews 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 Andrews County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.