Wisconsin County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 72 counties in Wisconsin, scored 0–100 across five domains. A county's score is the share of U.S. counties it is more distressed than; the average Wisconsin county scores 16.6. 2 counties score high, very high, or extreme.
Data: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts | Scores as of Aug 2026
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Menominee County is the most distressed of Wisconsin's 72 counties
County Distress Index score for Wisconsin's 72 counties, from green (least distressed, 0–29) to red (most distressed, 80–100). Data from 2024 to Aug 2026.
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County Distress Index score · data from 2024 to Aug 2026
Point to or tap a county for its rank and score. Click it, or tap it twice, to open its page.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Wisconsin's 72 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Wisconsin Counties
72 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Score Label | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | — | Menominee County | 96 | extreme county distress | Delinquency |
| 2 | — | Milwaukee County | 76 | high county distress | Default & Legal |
| 3 | — | Rusk County | 48 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 4 | — | Adams County | 47 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 5 | — | Forest County | 44 | moderate-low county distress | Labor |
| 6 | — | Racine County | 41 | moderate-low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 7 | — | Kenosha County | 37 | low-moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 8 | — | Langlade County | 35 | low-moderate county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 9 | — | Rock County | 32 | low-moderate county distress | Default & Legal |
| 10 | — | Iron County | 31 | low-moderate county distress | Delinquency |
| 11 | — | Burnett County | 30 | low-moderate county distress | Labor |
| 12 | — | Sawyer County | 30 | low-moderate county distress | Labor |
| 13 | — | Jackson County | 27 | low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 14 | — | Douglas County | 26 | low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 15 | — | Ashland County | 26 | low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 16 | — | Green Lake County | 23 | low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 17 | — | Marquette County | 22 | low county distress | Labor |
| 18 | — | Juneau County | 21 | low county distress | Labor |
| 19 | — | Washburn County | 21 | low county distress | Labor |
| 20 | — | Price County | 21 | low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 21 | — | Crawford County | 19 | very low county distress | Labor |
| 22 | — | Marinette County | 19 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 23 | — | Waushara County | 19 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 24 | — | Richland County | 17 | very low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 25 | — | Clark County | 15 | very low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 26 | — | Wood County | 15 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 27 | — | Shawano County | 15 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 28 | — | Bayfield County | 14 | very low county distress | Labor |
| 29 | — | Sauk County | 14 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 30 | — | Polk County | 14 | very low county distress | Labor |
| 31 | — | Monroe County | 13 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 32 | — | Waupaca County | 13 | very low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 33 | — | Vernon County | 13 | very low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 34 | — | Winnebago County | 12 | very low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 35 | — | Walworth County | 12 | very low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 36 | — | Vilas County | 12 | very low county distress | Labor |
| 37 | — | Barron County | 11 | very low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 38 | — | Dunn County | 10 | very low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 39 | — | Chippewa County | 10 | very low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 40 | — | Lincoln County | 9 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 41 | — | La Crosse County | 9 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 42 | — | Grant County | 9 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 43 | — | Fond du Lac County | 9 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 44 | — | Oneida County | 9 | exceptionally low county distress | Labor |
| 45 | — | Florence County | 8 | exceptionally low county distress | Labor |
| 46 | — | Brown County | 8 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 47 | — | Eau Claire County | 8 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 48 | — | Dane County | 7 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 49 | — | Marathon County | 6 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 50 | — | Sheboygan County | 6 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 51 | — | Jefferson County | 6 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 52 | — | Lafayette County | 6 | exceptionally low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 53 | — | St. Croix County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 54 | — | Manitowoc County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 55 | — | Oconto County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 56 | — | Pierce County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 57 | — | Dodge County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 58 | — | Pepin County | 5 | exceptionally low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 59 | — | Trempealeau County | 4 | exceptionally low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 60 | — | Taylor County | 4 | exceptionally low county distress | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 61 | — | Portage County | 4 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 62 | — | Columbia County | 4 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 63 | — | Outagamie County | 3 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 64 | — | Buffalo County | 3 | exceptionally low county distress | Labor |
| 65 | 3,050 | Washington County | 2 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 66 | 3,072 | Waukesha County | 2 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 67 | 3,089 | Door County | 1 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 68 | 3,095 | Iowa County | 1 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 69 | 3,100 | Green County | 1 | exceptionally low county distress | Default & Legal |
| 70 | 3,108 | Kewaunee County | 1 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 71 | 3,121 | Ozaukee County | 0 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 72 | 3,128 | Calumet County | 0 | exceptionally low county distress | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, the domains are averaged, and that average is ranked against every U.S. county. So a county's score is the share of U.S. counties it is more distressed than. National ranks are shown only for the 100 most and 100 least distressed counties, because ranks in between move between updates. Counties with identical composite scores share a rank, marked T- for tied.
Urban Institute data: 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. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it.