About two in five adults aged 25 to 54 in Tyler County, West Virginia, are not working
In Tyler County, 40.1% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tyler County's score
In Tyler County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 90.2. Income and the safety net comes next, at 69.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tyler 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.
Tyler County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (1.8%, August 2025) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (25.3, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.2 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202685th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working40.1% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 69.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.6% · 202473rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.6% · 202474th percentile
- People with a disability24.0% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- People without health insurance7.9% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,585 · 202453rd percentile
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- 45.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.9% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.8% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.1% · second quarter of 202672nd percentile
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- 39.6 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 rent20.4% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.3% · fiscal year 202715th percentile
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- 27.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.0% · August 202549th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people25.3 · 20255th or lower 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 Tyler 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 Tyler County, 24.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tyler County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Tyler County had its largest rise, from 27.5% in 2004 to 33.2% in 2009.
In Tyler County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 26.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Tyler County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tyler County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 14.1% in 2017 to 11.3% in 2018.
The share of households in Tyler County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2020, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 10.3% 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, Tyler County, West Virginia.
How Tyler County has changed
Tyler County's population had its largest rise, from 10,193 in 1974 to 11,268 in 1979.
Tyler County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 11,268 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tyler County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Tyler County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 2,366 in 2015 to 1,844 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Tyler County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 2,366 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tyler County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.2% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.2% | 2024 16.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,606 | 2024 $65,585 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Tyler County's history
1814
Formed December 6, 1814 from Ohio County. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 18,252. The 2020 Census counted 8,313, 46% of the peak. Census Bureau
2019
Lightning in May 2019 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1985
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tyler County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tyler County beside its neighbors
Tyler County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in West Virginia and Ohio. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tyler County ranks 6th of the seven; Wetzel County is highest, at 38.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ritchie County, WV | 56 | 14.8% | 33.4% |
| Tyler County, WV | 56 | 16.6% | 26.7% |
| Wetzel County, WV | 55 | 16.5% | 38.9% |
| Doddridge County, WV | 52 | 19.2% | 23.8% |
| Washington County, OH | 47 | 13.8% | 27.1% |
| Pleasants County, WV | 47 | 15.9% | 33.7% |
| Monroe County, OH | 46 | 13.8% | 35.9% |
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 Tyler County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Tyler County's poverty rate was 16.6% in 2024, 28th 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, Tyler County ranks 37th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tyler 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 Tyler County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.