In Moore County, Texas, benefit checks make up only 14 cents of every dollar of income
In Moore County, 13.6% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Moore County's score
In Moore County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 84.0. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 31.5. About one in seven renters (14.2%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 72% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Moore 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, Moore County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (22.8%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (8.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.7% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.2% · second quarter of 202684th percentile
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- 53.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.7% · 202454th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability10.6% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- People without health insurance22.8% · 2020 to 202498th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,411 · 202451st percentile
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- 41.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.8% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people37.8 · 20255th percentile
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- 38.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.1% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
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- 31.5 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 rent14.2% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.3% · fiscal year 202735th 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 Moore 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 Moore County, 11.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Moore County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Moore County had its largest drop, from 18.3% in 2009 to 14.2% in 2014.
In Moore County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 13.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about six times as much as benefit checks
In Moore County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 13.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Moore County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 11.5% in 2017 to 8.9% in 2018.
The share of households in Moore County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 8.6%
Low on the chart: 6.4% 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, Moore County, Texas.
How Moore County has changed
Moore County's population had its largest rise, from 13,617 in 1974 to 16,025 in 1979.
Moore County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21,872
High on the chart: 22,252 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Moore County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Moore County had its largest rise in the last span, from 10,972 in 2020 to 12,962 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Moore County nearly doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 12,962, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 8,756. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Moore County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.4% | 2024 13.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,786 | 2024 $66,411 |
The table uses 3.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Moore County's history
1876
Created in 1876, organized in 1892. Wikipedia
1982
A tornado in March 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in June 1992 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A tornado in April 2007 did $1.3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 21,904. The 2020 Census counted 21,358, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1992
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Moore County. FEMA
Moore County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Moore County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Moore County ranks 5th of the seven; Hutchinson County is highest, at 26.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | 86 | 22.5% | 23.0% |
| Hutchinson County, TX | 69 | 14.4% | 26.2% |
| Moore County, TX | 49 | 13.7% | 13.6% |
| Oldham County, TX | 47 | 12.7% | 14.0% |
| Sherman County, TX | 30 | 12.1% | 5.5% |
| Carson County, TX | 28 | 9.5% | 21.9% |
| Hartley County, TX | 22 | 9.2% | 3.8% |
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 Moore County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Moore County's poverty rate was 13.7% in 2024, 154th 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, Moore County ranks 181st of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Moore 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 Moore County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.