West Virginia County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 55 counties in West Virginia, scored 0–100 across five domains. Mean score: 54.4. 7 counties score high, very high, or extreme.
Data: Census, BLS, Urban Institute, HUD, US Courts | Scores as of 2026-03-26
West Virginia Snapshot
55 Counties Scored
54.4 Mean Score
53.6 Median Score
80.5 Mingo County Most Distressed
27.4 Jefferson County Least Distressed
1 very high county distress6 high county distress11 moderate-high county distress16 moderate county distress16 moderate-low county distress4 low-moderate county distress1 low county distress
Score Label Distribution West Virginia County Map
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Low county distress Moderate-low county distress Moderate county distress High county distress Extreme county distress
All 55 West Virginia counties colored by county distress score range. Hover for details; click released counties for full reports.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How West Virginia's 55 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All West Virginia Counties
55 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Score Label | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 135 | Mingo County | 80.5 | very high county distress | Labor |
| 2 | 219 | McDowell County | 77.3 | high county distress | Labor |
| 3 | 253 | Clay County | 76.3 | high county distress | Labor |
| 4 | 273 | Boone County | 75.6 | high county distress | Delinquency |
| 5 | 300 | Webster County | 75.0 | high county distress | Delinquency |
| 6 | 383 | Logan County | 72.9 | high county distress | Labor |
| 7 | 465 | Wyoming County | 70.6 | high county distress | Labor |
| 8 | 605 | Lincoln County | 68.2 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 9 | 755 | Wayne County | 65.0 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 10 | 770 | Randolph County | 64.7 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 11 | 777 | Mercer County | 64.5 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 12 | 784 | Fayette County | 64.5 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 13 | 797 | Calhoun County | 64.3 | moderate-high county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 14 | 800 | Cabell County | 64.3 | moderate-high county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 15 | 846 | Raleigh County | 63.5 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 16 | 860 | Summers County | 63.2 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 17 | 964 | Brooke County | 61.4 | moderate-high county distress | Labor |
| 18 | 1,000 | Hancock County | 60.7 | moderate-high county distress | Delinquency |
| 19 | 1,138 | Nicholas County | 58.3 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 20 | 1,183 | Marshall County | 57.5 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 21 | 1,200 | Kanawha County | 57.1 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 22 | 1,226 | Lewis County | 56.4 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 23 | 1,249 | Upshur County | 56.1 | moderate county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 24 | 1,265 | Barbour County | 55.9 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 25 | 1,269 | Jackson County | 55.8 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 26 | 1,289 | Roane County | 55.5 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 27 | 1,362 | Pocahontas County | 54.1 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 28 | 1,389 | Greenbrier County | 53.6 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 29 | 1,399 | Ohio County | 53.5 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 30 | 1,405 | Wood County | 53.4 | moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 31 | 1,491 | Monroe County | 51.9 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 32 | 1,509 | Gilmer County | 51.6 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 33 | 1,527 | Ritchie County | 51.3 | moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 34 | 1,541 | Wetzel County | 51.0 | moderate county distress | Labor |
| 35 | 1,621 | Preston County | 49.4 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 36 | 1,694 | Marion County | 48.1 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 37 | 1,701 | Wirt County | 48.0 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 38 | 1,713 | Braxton County | 47.8 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 39 | 1,746 | Tyler County | 47.3 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 40 | 1,776 | Berkeley County | 46.8 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 41 | 1,809 | Hampshire County | 46.1 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 42 | 1,853 | Mason County | 45.5 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 43 | 1,877 | Hardy County | 45.0 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 44 | 1,922 | Harrison County | 44.2 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 45 | 1,960 | Monongalia County | 43.6 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 46 | 1,979 | Grant County | 43.2 | moderate-low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 47 | 1,985 | Doddridge County | 43.2 | moderate-low county distress | Delinquency |
| 48 | 2,021 | Taylor County | 42.3 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 49 | 2,027 | Pleasants County | 42.1 | moderate-low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 50 | 2,082 | Mineral County | 41.1 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 51 | 2,266 | Putnam County | 37.5 | low-moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 52 | 2,411 | Tucker County | 34.7 | low-moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 53 | 2,468 | Pendleton County | 33.4 | low-moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 54 | 2,581 | Morgan County | 31.0 | low-moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 55 | 2,724 | Jefferson County | 27.4 | low county distress | Delinquency |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, and the composite is the mean of those domain scores. Higher scores indicate greater household financial distress.
extreme county distress — 0 West Virginia counties
very high county distress — 1 West Virginia county
high county distress — 6 West Virginia counties
moderate-high county distress — 11 West Virginia counties
moderate county distress — 16 West Virginia counties
moderate-low county distress — 16 West Virginia counties
low-moderate county distress — 4 West Virginia counties
low county distress — 1 West Virginia county
very low county distress — 0 West Virginia counties
exceptionally low county distress — 0 West Virginia counties