About one in four people in Jones County, Texas, lives below the poverty line
In Jones County, 22.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jones County's score
In Jones County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 83.6. People with a credit card behind: 10.3%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 83.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jones 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.
Jones County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (78.5, 2025) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.3% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.7% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 83.2 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 rent22.7% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.6% · fiscal year 202789th percentile
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- 80.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.7% · 202493rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.0% · 202472nd percentile
- People with a disability18.1% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- People without health insurance19.3% · 2020 to 202496th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,076 · 202472nd percentile
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- 58.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.2% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people78.5 · 202524th percentile
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- 52.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202634th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.1% · 2020 to 202469th 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 Jones 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 Jones County, 16.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jones County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jones County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 30.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Jones County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Jones County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.7%, with most of the change between 2022 and 2023
High on the chart: 14.7% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jones County, Texas.
How Jones County has changed
Jones County's population had its largest rise, from 16,812 in 1989 to 18,930 in 1994.
Jones County's population rose by about a quarter to 20,850, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 20,850 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jones County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Jones County had its largest rise, from 3,462 in 1990 to 5,005 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Jones County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 5,011 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jones County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.9% | 2024 22.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,785 | 2024 $59,076 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Jones County's history
1858
Created in 1858, organized in 1881. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 24,299. The 2020 Census counted 19,663, 81% of the peak. Census Bureau
1962
A tornado in May 1962 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in August 2007 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in October 2018 did $6.25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A flood in September 2020 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1990
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jones County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jones County beside its neighbors
Jones County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jones County ranks 2nd of the seven; Haskell County is highest, at 37.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jones County, TX | 86 | 22.7% | 30.3% |
| Taylor County, TX | 67 | 14.8% | 22.7% |
| Haskell County, TX | 67 | 22.8% | 37.5% |
| Stonewall County, TX | 57 | 16.5% | 24.0% |
| Callahan County, TX | 54 | 11.5% | 27.8% |
| Fisher County, TX | 46 | 14.9% | 28.9% |
| Shackelford County, TX | 42 | 12.1% | 16.5% |
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 Jones County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Jones County's poverty rate was 22.7% in 2024, 18th 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, Jones County ranks 37th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jones 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.
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 Jones County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.