About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, have a job
In Manitowoc County, 13.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Manitowoc County's score
In Manitowoc County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 27.5. Jobs are the lowest part, at 14.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Manitowoc 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.
Manitowoc County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 27.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.6% · August 202513th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people110.7 · 202541st percentile
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- 22.5 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 rent14.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.1% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
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- 21.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.5% · 202418th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.2% · 202418th percentile
- People with a disability12.9% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,188 · 202437th percentile
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- 19.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.1% · August 202512th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.8% · August 202529th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.1% · second quarter of 202616th percentile
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- 14.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.5% · 2020 to 202410th 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 Manitowoc 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 Manitowoc County, 22.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Manitowoc County
Wisconsin
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Manitowoc County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 23.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Manitowoc County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.7% in 2012 to 9.1% in 2013.
The share of households in Manitowoc County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 10.3%
High on the chart: 10.4% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Manitowoc County, Wisconsin.
How Manitowoc County has changed
Manitowoc County's population fell most sharply on the way to its 1989 low, from 82,332 in 1984 to 80,469 in 1989.
Manitowoc County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 82,803 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Manitowoc County, Wisconsin.
The number of jobs located in Manitowoc County rose most sharply from its first year (31,359 in 1990) to 35,053 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Manitowoc County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 36,439 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Manitowoc County, Wisconsin.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.9% | 2024 9.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,667 | 2024 $71,188 |
The table uses 3.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Manitowoc County's history
1836
Created in 1836 prior to Wisconsin statehood and organized in 1848. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 82,918. The 2020 Census counted 81,359, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
1994
A tornado in July 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
Hail in May 2000 did $46 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in July 2004 did $1.6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Hail in July 2006 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Manitowoc County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Manitowoc County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Manitowoc County, two score higher. Of the group, Manitowoc County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (23.6%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brown County, WI | 8 | 8.2% | 16.2% |
| Sheboygan County, WI | 6 | 8.3% | 18.7% |
| Manitowoc County, WI | 5 | 9.5% | 23.6% |
| Kewaunee County, WI | 1 | 7.4% | 22.3% |
| Calumet County, WI | 0 | 5.8% | 13.6% |
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 Manitowoc County the poorest county in Wisconsin?
No, Manitowoc County's poverty rate was 9.5% in 2024, 45th highest of 72 in Wisconsin (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Menominee County, at 24.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Manitowoc County ranks 54th of 72 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Manitowoc 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 Action of Wisconsin
Legal aid
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Disability Rights Wisconsin
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 Manitowoc 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 Manitowoc County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.