About half people with a credit file in Frio County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Frio County, 49.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Frio County's score
In Frio County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 94.8. About three in five people (62.8%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 90.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Frio 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.
Frio County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (50, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.9% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.9% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score62.8% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 90.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line27.0% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line37.4% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability21.2% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance15.1% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,825 · 202488th percentile
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- 60.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202689th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.6% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
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- 55.7 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 rent11.5% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.4% · fiscal year 202794th percentile
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- 52.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector49.2% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people50 · 20259th 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 Frio 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 Frio County, 12.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Frio County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Frio County rose most sharply from its first year (11.2% in 1969) to 17.3% in 1974.
In Frio County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Frio County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Frio County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 27.9% in 2013 to 23.1% in 2014.
The share of households in Frio County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 23.6%
Low on the chart: 21.3% 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, Frio County, Texas.
How Frio County has changed
Frio County's population nearly doubled to 19,520, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 15,563. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Frio County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Frio County had its largest rise, from 4,859 in 2010 to 7,085 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Frio County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 7,085 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Frio County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 6.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 40.1% | 2024 27.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,026 | 2024 $51,825 |
The table uses 6.4% for 2025; the score uses 5.5% 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 Frio County's history
1973
A tornado in April 1973 killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 18,385, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1990
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Frio County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Frio County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Frio County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Frio County ranks 3rd of the six; Zavala County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimmit County, TX | 95 | 28.5% | 32.8% |
| Zavala County, TX | 94 | 25.7% | 39.7% |
| Frio County, TX | 84 | 27.0% | 28.6% |
| Atascosa County, TX | 82 | 15.9% | 25.7% |
| La Salle County, TX | 76 | 27.3% | 23.8% |
| Medina County, TX | 54 | 11.2% | 25.1% |
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 Frio County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Frio County's poverty rate was 27.0% in 2024, 7th 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, Frio County ranks 40th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Frio 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.
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 Frio County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.