About one in five people in Edwards County, Texas, lives below the poverty line
In Edwards County, 19.2% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 84% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 53% of U.S. counties.
What drives Edwards County's score
In Edwards County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 82.2. Bankruptcy filings ran at 215.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 78% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 71.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Edwards 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.
Edwards County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (6.1%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a disability (10.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202586th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people215.4 · 202578th percentile
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- 71.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.2% · 202484th percentile
- Children below the poverty line31.8% · 202493rd percentile
- People with a disability10.6% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- People without health insurance19.2% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,450 · 202476th percentile
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- 60.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.3% · second quarter of 202634th percentile
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- 36.2 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 rent6.1% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.5% · fiscal year 202767th percentile
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- 11.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202615th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.7% · 2020 to 20247th 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 Edwards 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 Edwards County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Edwards County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Edwards County rose most in two steps: 9.7% in 1974 to 17.3% in 1979; 20.7% in 1994 to 28.3% in 1999.
In Edwards County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 32.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Edwards County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Edwards County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.7% in 2021 to 13.3% in 2022.
The share of households in Edwards County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2021, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 5.7% 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, Edwards County, Texas.
How Edwards County has changed
Edwards County's population had its largest drop, from 2,347 in 1969 to 1,869 in 1974.
Edwards County's population fell 41% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 2,511 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Edwards County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Edwards County rose most sharply after its 2015 low, from 368 in 2015 to 630 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Edwards County was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 630 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Edwards County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.3% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 31.5% | 2024 19.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,533 | 2024 $57,450 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Edwards County's history
1762
Lipan Apache chief El Gran Cabezón persuaded Franciscans to establish San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz Mission on the Nueces River. Wikipedia
1771
San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz Mission abandoned in 1771. Wikipedia
1858
Edwards County was created in 1858 and organized in 1883. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 3,768. The 2020 Census counted 1,422, 38% of the peak. Census Bureau
1927
F5 tornado on April 12, 1927 destroyed 235 of 247 buildings in Rocksprings; killed 74 townspeople and injured 205. Wikipedia
1996
A flash flood in October 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A flash flood in November 2001 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1993
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Edwards County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Edwards County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Edwards County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Edwards County ranks 3rd of the eight; Real County is highest, at 43.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Val Verde County, TX | 74 | 18.1% | 26.7% |
| Real County, TX | 68 | 15.1% | 43.9% |
| Sutton County, TX | 54 | 12.3% | 24.2% |
| Edwards County, TX | 53 | 19.2% | 32.9% |
| Kinney County, TX | 53 | 20.7% | 35.5% |
| Kimble County, TX | 45 | 15.4% | 31.3% |
| Kerr County, TX | 40 | 11.2% | 23.6% |
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 Edwards County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Edwards County's poverty rate was 19.2% in 2024, 46th 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, Edwards County ranks 171st of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Edwards 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 Edwards 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 Edwards County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.