About one in six people in Wood County, West Virginia, lives below the poverty line
In Wood County, 15.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 67% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 58% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wood County's score
In Wood County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 72.4. People with a car or retail loan behind: 7.5%, August 2025, higher than in 78% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 62.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wood 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.
Wood County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (86.7, 2025) and people without health insurance (6.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 72.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.1% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.5% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.1% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
-
- 62.8 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 202666th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.1% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
-
- 59.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.5% · 202467th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.1% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability17.5% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.2% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,516 · 202472nd percentile
-
- 43.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.5% · August 202558th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people86.7 · 202529th percentile
-
- 40.2 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 rent16.8% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202738th percentile
-
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 Wood 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 Wood County, 21.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wood County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Wood County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 22.5% in 2004 to 28.0% in 2009.
In Wood County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Wood County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wood County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 17.2% in 2019 to 15.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Wood County getting SNAP food aid rose to 17.6%, the highest on the chart
Low on the chart: 14.6% 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, Wood County, West Virginia.
How Wood County has changed
Wood County's population had its largest rise, from 87,778 in 1974 to 92,546 in 1979.
Wood County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 92,546 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wood County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Wood County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 37,459 in 2015 to 32,731 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Wood County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 18% since
High on the chart: 42,778 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wood County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.7% | 2024 15.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,053 | 2024 $59,516 |
The table uses 4.3% 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 Wood County's history
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 93,648. The 2020 Census counted 84,296, 90% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A tornado in September 2010 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
Heavy rain in August 2017 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in January 2018 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flood in April 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1967
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wood County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wood County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Wood County, in West Virginia and Ohio, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Wood County ranks 7th of the eight; Wirt County is highest, at 37.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meigs County, OH | 79 | 14.9% | 35.9% |
| Athens County, OH | 72 | 25.3% | 29.0% |
| Jackson County, WV | 69 | 17.5% | 31.1% |
| Wirt County, WV | 59 | 16.6% | 37.2% |
| Wood County, WV | 58 | 15.5% | 27.8% |
| Ritchie County, WV | 56 | 14.8% | 33.4% |
| Washington County, OH | 47 | 13.8% | 27.1% |
| Pleasants County, WV | 47 | 15.9% | 33.7% |
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 Wood County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Wood County's poverty rate was 15.5% in 2024, 36th 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, Wood County ranks 35th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wood 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.
-
CCCS of the Mid-ohio Valley, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Legal Aid of West Virginia
Legal aid
-
Mountain State Justice, Inc.
Legal aid
-
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 Wood County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.