About one in five people in Nacogdoches County, Texas, lives below the poverty line
In Nacogdoches County, 21.9% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Nacogdoches County's score
In Nacogdoches County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 89.6. About three in ten renters (31.1%, 2020 to 2024) pay half their income or more in rent, a higher share than in 98% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 80.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Nacogdoches 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.
Nacogdoches County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (114.7, 2025) and people with a disability (15.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.6 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent31.1% · 2020 to 202498th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.5% · fiscal year 202781st percentile
-
- 80.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.9% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.4% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability15.6% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- People without health insurance15.4% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,767 · 202481st percentile
-
- 75.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.1% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.7% · second quarter of 202681st percentile
-
- 67.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.6% · August 202590th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people114.7 · 202543rd percentile
-
- 66.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.7% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
-
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 Nacogdoches 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 Nacogdoches County, 15.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Nacogdoches County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Nacogdoches County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 26.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Nacogdoches County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Nacogdoches County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (12.3% in 2009) to 13.9% in 2010.
The share of households in Nacogdoches County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen to 16.6%
Low on the chart: 12.3% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Nacogdoches County, Texas.
How Nacogdoches County has changed
Nacogdoches County's population doubled to 65,728, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 43,104. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Nacogdoches County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Nacogdoches County had its largest rise, from 20,536 in 1995 to 21,755 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Nacogdoches County rose 14% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 22,963 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Nacogdoches County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.7% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.4% | 2024 21.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,112 | 2024 $55,767 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.8% 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 Nacogdoches County's history
1837
Organized as a county in 1837, originally created as a municipality of Mexico in 1826. Wikipedia
1961
A tornado in March 1961 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1961
A tornado in November 1961 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A thunderstorm in June 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 64,653, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A tornado in January 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1975
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Nacogdoches County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Nacogdoches County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Nacogdoches County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Nacogdoches County ranks 5th of the six; San Augustine County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Augustine County, TX | 92 | 20.4% | 39.7% |
| Nacogdoches County, TX | 90 | 21.9% | 26.7% |
| Angelina County, TX | 83 | 12.7% | 29.1% |
| Shelby County, TX | 83 | 16.2% | 23.9% |
| Cherokee County, TX | 74 | 16.0% | 31.7% |
| Rusk County, TX | 73 | 14.1% | 27.3% |
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 Nacogdoches County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Nacogdoches County's poverty rate was 21.9% in 2024, 25th 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, Nacogdoches County ranks 15th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Nacogdoches 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.
-
Lone Star Legal Aid
Legal aid
-
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 Nacogdoches 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 Nacogdoches County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.