About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Lewis County, West Virginia, is not working
In Lewis County, 31.8% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lewis County's score
In Lewis County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 83.9. Late payments on loans come next, at 78.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lewis 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.
Lewis County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (36.4, 2025) and people without health insurance (6.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.9 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.8% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
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- 78.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.2% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.8% · second quarter of 202676th percentile
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- 61.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.2% · 202471st percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.7% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability16.2% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,454 · 202476th percentile
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- 44.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.1% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people36.4 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 42.5 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 rent17.4% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202739th 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 Lewis 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 Lewis County, 21.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lewis County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lewis County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 32.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Lewis County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lewis County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.5% in 2009 to 11.7% in 2010.
The share of households in Lewis County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 11.7% 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, Lewis County, West Virginia.
How Lewis County has changed
Lewis County's population fell 11% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1984 and 1989
High on the chart: 19,268 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lewis County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Lewis County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 6,650 in 2015 to 5,144 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Lewis County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 6,650 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lewis County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.2% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.6% | 2024 16.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,555 | 2024 $57,454 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Lewis County's history
1816
Created December 18, 1816 from Harrison County. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 22,271. The 2020 Census counted 17,033, 76% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1967
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lewis County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lewis County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Lewis County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lewis County ranks 4th of the seven; Webster County is highest, at 50.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webster County, WV | 97 | 24.4% | 50.0% |
| Lewis County, WV | 70 | 16.2% | 32.6% |
| Upshur County, WV | 67 | 18.5% | 32.2% |
| Braxton County, WV | 64 | 19.9% | 40.5% |
| Gilmer County, WV | 64 | 26.8% | 35.2% |
| Harrison County, WV | 54 | 14.2% | 24.9% |
| Doddridge County, WV | 52 | 19.2% | 23.8% |
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 Lewis County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Lewis County's poverty rate was 16.2% in 2024, 33rd highest of 55 in West Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is McDowell County, at 38.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lewis County ranks 21st of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lewis 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 West Virginia
Legal aid
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Mountain State Justice, Inc.
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.
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 Lewis County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.