About one in 11 people in Wilson County, Texas, lives below the poverty line
In Wilson County, 9.3% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wilson County's score
In Wilson County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 50.7. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 31.2. The typical household earns $97,327 a year (2024), more than in 93% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wilson 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.
Wilson County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 50.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.3% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people92.3 · 202532nd percentile
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- 50.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202565th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.6% · second quarter of 202639th percentile
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- 48.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.0% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
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- 46.8 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 rent22.3% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.8% · fiscal year 202719th percentile
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- 31.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.3% · 202417th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.6% · 202416th percentile
- People with a disability15.3% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- People without health insurance11.0% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$97,327 · 20246th 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 Wilson 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 Wilson County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wilson County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Wilson County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 21.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Wilson County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wilson County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 8.7% in 2021 to 7.3% in 2022.
The share of households in Wilson County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 7.2% 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, Wilson County, Texas.
How Wilson County has changed
Wilson County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 49,101 in 2019 to 55,415 in 2024.
Wilson County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 55,415, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 14,400. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wilson County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Wilson County had its largest rise, from 6,490 in 2010 to 7,664 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Wilson County tripled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 9,592, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 6,490. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wilson County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.0% | 2024 9.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,618 | 2024 $97,327 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Wilson County's history
1860
Formed in 1860 from Bexar County and Karnes County. Wikipedia
1998
A flash flood in October 1998 did $35 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A flash flood in August 2001 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A tornado in October 2015 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 49,753, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A flash flood in September 2020 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1993
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wilson County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wilson County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Wilson County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Wilson County ranks 2nd of the six; Atascosa County is highest, at 25.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atascosa County, TX | 82 | 15.9% | 25.7% |
| Bexar County, TX | 79 | 14.6% | 18.4% |
| Karnes County, TX | 73 | 19.4% | 16.2% |
| Gonzales County, TX | 61 | 18.0% | 21.2% |
| Wilson County, TX | 42 | 9.3% | 21.3% |
| Guadalupe County, TX | 41 | 7.9% | 19.5% |
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 Wilson County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Wilson County's poverty rate was 9.3% in 2024, 228th 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, Wilson County ranks 206th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wilson 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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Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
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 Wilson 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 Wilson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.