About one in 10 people in Mathews County, Virginia, lives below the poverty line
In Mathews County, 9.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 81% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mathews County's score
In Mathews County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 73.7. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 37.2. People with a credit card behind: 2.7%, August 2025, lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mathews 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, Mathews County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (21.6%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (25.4%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.7 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 rent20.1% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.4% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
-
- 44.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.4% · August 202528th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people152.7 · 202560th percentile
-
- 40.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.6% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability21.6% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance6.8% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$78,692 · 202422nd percentile
-
- 39.5 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 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.9% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
-
- 37.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.7% · August 20258th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.7% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.1% · second quarter of 202622nd 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 Mathews 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 Mathews County, 33.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mathews County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Mathews County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 25.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Mathews County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mathews County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.7% in 2014 to 6.7% in 2015.
The share of households in Mathews County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 5.4% 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, Mathews County, Virginia.
How Mathews County has changed
Mathews County's population rose by about a fifth from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8,602, with most of the change between 1969 and 1974
High on the chart: 9,223 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mathews County, Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Mathews County rose 18% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 1,642 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mathews County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.2% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.4% | 2024 9.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,869 | 2024 $78,692 |
The table uses 3.6% 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 Mathews County's history
1791
Created in 1791 from splitting Gloucester County. Wikipedia
1882
Oyster war over out-of-state watermen dredging local oyster beds. Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 9,207. The 2020 Census counted 8,533, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
2012
Hurricane Sandy devastated Mathews County in October 2012. Wikipedia
-
Since 1972
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mathews County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mathews County beside its neighbors
Mathews County scores higher than all two counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mathews County ranks 2nd of the three; Middlesex County is highest, at 29.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathews County, VA | 45 | 9.6% | 25.7% |
| Middlesex County, VA | 44 | 11.2% | 29.1% |
| Gloucester County, VA | 34 | 7.5% | 23.5% |
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 Mathews County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Mathews County's poverty rate was 9.6% in 2024, 90th highest of 133 in Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Radford city, at 27.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Mathews County ranks 74th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mathews 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.
-
Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia
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 Mathews 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 Mathews County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.