About one in four people in Menard County, Texas, has a disability
In Menard County, 27.4% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Menard County's score
In Menard County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 90.3. Late payments on loans come next, at 62.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Menard 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.
Menard County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (6.0%, 2020 to 2024) and adults 25 to 54 not working (5.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.0% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line32.7% · 202494th percentile
- People with a disability27.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance23.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,414 · 202479th percentile
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- 62.4 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 score37.7% · second quarter of 202640th percentile
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- 57.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector36.8% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202524th percentile
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- 32.1 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 rent6.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202759th percentile
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- 29.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working5.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Menard 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 Menard County, 33.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Menard County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Menard County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 38.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Menard County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Menard County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 21.0% in 2016 to 10.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Menard County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 9.1%
Low on the chart: 5.0% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Menard County, Texas.
How Menard County has changed
Menard County's population fell by about a third to 1,911, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 2,407. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Menard County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Menard County had its largest rise, from 470 in 1990 to 555 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Menard County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 578 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Menard County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.5% | 2024 20.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,465 | 2024 $56,414 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Menard County's history
1757
Presidio San Luis de las Amarillas founded by Father Alonso Giraldo de Terreros in 1757. Wikipedia
1929
Gas deposits tapped in Menard County in 1929. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 4,521. The 2020 Census counted 1,962, 43% of the peak. Census Bureau
2018
A flood in October 2018 did $7.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1993
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Menard County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Menard County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Menard County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Menard County ranks 2nd of the six; McCulloch County is highest, at 38.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| McCulloch County, TX | 80 | 18.2% | 38.8% |
| Schleicher County, TX | 67 | 15.4% | 27.1% |
| Menard County, TX | 56 | 20.0% | 38.6% |
| Concho County, TX | 54 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| Kimble County, TX | 45 | 15.4% | 31.3% |
| Mason County, TX | 25 | 11.2% | 28.4% |
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 Menard County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Menard County's poverty rate was 20.0% in 2024, 36th 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, Menard County ranks 160th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Menard 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 Menard 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 Menard County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.