About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Pulaski County, Virginia, are not working
In Pulaski County, 28.0% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 84% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 69% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pulaski County's score
In Pulaski County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 79.1. Late payments on loans come next, at 63.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pulaski 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.
Pulaski County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (17.9%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (5.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.1 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202673rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.0% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
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- 63.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.9% · second quarter of 202659th percentile
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- 63.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.5% · August 202555th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people184.2 · 202570th percentile
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- 51.1 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 rent23.8% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.9% · fiscal year 202720th percentile
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- 50.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.3% · 202450th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.0% · 202444th percentile
- People with a disability18.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- People without health insurance5.5% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,762 · 202458th 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 Pulaski 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 Pulaski County, 22.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pulaski County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pulaski County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 30.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Pulaski County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 30.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pulaski County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.2% in 2015 to 12.5% in 2016.
The share of households in Pulaski County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2020, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 12.0% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pulaski County, Virginia.
How Pulaski County has changed
Pulaski County's population rose 13% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1969 and 1974
High on the chart: 35,958 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pulaski County, Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Pulaski County fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 15,254 in 2005 to 11,250 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Pulaski County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 16,410 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pulaski County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.5% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.9% | 2024 13.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,627 | 2024 $63,762 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Pulaski County's history
1839
Pulaski County formed on March 30, 1839, from parts of Montgomery and Wythe counties. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 35,229. The 2020 Census counted 33,800, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $3.9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $1.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flood in September 2024 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flood in September 2024 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pulaski County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pulaski County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Pulaski County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pulaski County ranks 3rd of the five; Wythe County is highest, at 35.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radford city, VA | 77 | 27.2% | — |
| Pulaski County, VA | 69 | 13.3% | 30.7% |
| Wythe County, VA | 67 | 11.8% | 35.0% |
| Carroll County, VA | 65 | 14.4% | — |
| Giles County, VA | 44 | 11.5% | 30.7% |
| Bland County, VA | 41 | 14.6% | 34.8% |
| Montgomery County, VA | 34 | 20.6% | — |
| Floyd County, VA | 15 | 11.4% | 29.2% |
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 Pulaski County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Pulaski County's poverty rate was 13.3% in 2024, 52nd 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, Pulaski County ranks 41st of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pulaski 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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New River Community Action (pulaski County)
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Southwest Virginia Legal Aid Society
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 Pulaski 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 Pulaski County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.