About one in nine people in Bandera County, Texas, lives below the poverty line
In Bandera County, 11.0% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 69% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Bandera County's score
In Bandera County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 65.0. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 26.8. People with a car or retail loan behind: 3.4%, August 2025, lower than in 79% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Bandera 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, Bandera County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (21.4%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (13.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 65.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202658th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.5% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
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- 61.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.9% · August 202556th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people167.9 · 202565th percentile
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- 56.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.0% · 202430th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.9% · 202454th percentile
- People with a disability21.4% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance13.3% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,716 · 202425th percentile
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- 39.5 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 rent9.7% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.5% · fiscal year 202767th percentile
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- 26.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202524th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.5% · second quarter of 202635th 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 Bandera 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 Bandera County, 29.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Bandera County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Bandera County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Bandera County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Bandera County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 10.4% in 2018 to 7.8% in 2019.
The share of households in Bandera County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 7.2%
Low on the chart: 6.9% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Bandera County, Texas.
How Bandera County has changed
Bandera County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size, reaching 22,830, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 17,039. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Bandera County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Bandera County had its largest rise in the last span, from 3,358 in 2020 to 3,868 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Bandera County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 3,868, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 2,890. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Bandera County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.7% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.9% | 2024 11.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,309 | 2024 $76,716 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Bandera County's history
1855
Bandera founded 1855 by Polish Roman Catholic immigrants from Silesia. Wikipedia
1856
Established by Texas Legislature in 1856 from portions of Bexar and Uvalde Counties. Wikipedia
1997
A flash flood in April 1997 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A flash flood in June 1997 did $5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A flash flood in March 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in July 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 20,851, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1978
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Bandera County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Bandera County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Bandera County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Bandera County ranks 3rd of the seven; Real County is highest, at 43.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Bexar County, TX | 79 | 14.6% | 18.4% |
| Real County, TX | 68 | 15.1% | 43.9% |
| Medina County, TX | 54 | 11.2% | 25.1% |
| Bandera County, TX | 49 | 11.0% | 27.7% |
| Kerr County, TX | 40 | 11.2% | 23.6% |
| Kendall County, TX | 18 | 6.5% | 13.4% |
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 Bandera County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Bandera County's poverty rate was 11.0% in 2024, 209th 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, Bandera County ranks 183rd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Bandera 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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Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
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 Bandera 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 Bandera County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.