Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Mercer County, West Virginia
In Mercer County, 40.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mercer County's score
In Mercer County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 83.8. People with a credit card behind: 8.6%, August 2025, higher than in 88% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 75.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mercer 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.
Mercer County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (4.9%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (75.8, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.6% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.3% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.7% · second quarter of 202685th percentile
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- 75.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.5% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
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- 71.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.9% · 202479th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.3% · 202480th percentile
- People with a disability23.3% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- People without health insurance4.9% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,317 · 202484th percentile
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- 54.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.5% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people75.8 · 202522nd percentile
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- 43.5 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 rent15.5% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd 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 Mercer 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 Mercer 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
Mercer County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Mercer County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 16% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Mercer County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 40.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mercer County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 19.4% in 2014 to 21.2% in 2015; 20.3% in 2016 to 22.1% in 2017.
The share of households in Mercer County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2021 and has since fallen to 21.6%
Low on the chart: 15.6% 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, Mercer County, West Virginia.
How Mercer County has changed
Mercer County's population had its largest drop, from 72,364 in 1984 to 65,936 in 1989.
Mercer County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 74,641 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mercer County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Mercer County had its largest drop, from 19,793 in 2015 to 17,574 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Mercer County fell 7% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 17,574 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mercer County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.3% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.3% | 2024 17.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,149 | 2024 $54,317 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Mercer County's history
1837
Founded March 17, 1837. Wikipedia
1862
Princeton burned by Confederate forces. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 75,013. The 2020 Census counted 59,664, 80% of the peak. Census Bureau
1998
Heavy rain in February 1998 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A flash flood in July 2001 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flash flood in March 2010 did $1.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A flash flood in February 2025 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mercer County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mercer County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Mercer County, in West Virginia and Virginia, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mercer County ranks 4th of the eight; McDowell County is highest, at 52.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| McDowell County, WV | 95 | 38.4% | 52.2% |
| Summers County, WV | 94 | 24.2% | 45.2% |
| Wyoming County, WV | 93 | 24.8% | 42.0% |
| Tazewell County, VA | 88 | 17.4% | 37.1% |
| Raleigh County, WV | 85 | 18.7% | 33.7% |
| Mercer County, WV | 76 | 17.9% | 40.1% |
| Giles County, VA | 44 | 11.5% | 30.7% |
| Bland County, VA | 41 | 14.6% | 34.8% |
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 Mercer County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Mercer County's poverty rate was 17.9% in 2024, 21st 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, Mercer County ranks 15th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mercer 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.
Download the CSV for Mercer 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 Mercer County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.