In Shackelford County, Texas, benefit checks make up only 17 cents of every dollar of income
In Shackelford County, 16.5% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Shackelford County's score
In Shackelford County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 69.6. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 11.6. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 16.7% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Shackelford 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, Shackelford County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (13.4%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (7.8%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 69.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.8% · August 202582nd 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 score40.7% · second quarter of 202652nd percentile
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- 53.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.4% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people92.9 · 202532nd percentile
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- 50.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.1% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.3% · 202440th percentile
- People with a disability16.2% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- People without health insurance13.4% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,833 · 202433rd percentile
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- 41.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202637th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.9% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
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- 11.6 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 rent9.8% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.7% · fiscal year 202711th 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 Shackelford 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 Shackelford County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Shackelford County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Shackelford County fell most sharply on the way to its 2014 low, from 13.4% in 2009 to 5.9% in 2014.
In Shackelford County, pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Shackelford County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Shackelford County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.4% in 2012 to 9.6% in 2013.
The share of households in Shackelford County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 4.5% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Shackelford County, Texas.
How Shackelford County has changed
Shackelford County's population had its largest drop, from 4,305 in 1984 to 3,436 in 1989.
Shackelford County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 4,305 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Shackelford County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Shackelford County had its largest rise, from 1,153 in 2010 to 1,464 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Shackelford County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 1,464 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Shackelford County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.7% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.1% | 2024 12.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,862 | 2024 $72,833 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Shackelford County's history
1858
Created in 1858 and organized in 1874. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 6,695. The 2020 Census counted 3,105, 46% of the peak. Census Bureau
2002
A flash flood in April 2002 did $3 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1978
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Shackelford County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Shackelford County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Shackelford County score higher than it does. Of the group, Shackelford County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Haskell County gets the largest, at 37.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jones County, TX | 86 | 22.7% | 30.3% |
| Eastland County, TX | 78 | 18.5% | 34.8% |
| Throckmorton County, TX | 77 | 14.1% | 36.3% |
| Stephens County, TX | 74 | 17.7% | 30.4% |
| Haskell County, TX | 67 | 22.8% | 37.5% |
| Callahan County, TX | 54 | 11.5% | 27.8% |
| 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 Shackelford County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Shackelford County's poverty rate was 12.1% in 2024, 186th 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, Shackelford County ranks 208th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Shackelford 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 Shackelford 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 Shackelford County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.