About two in five people with a credit file in Menominee County, Wisconsin, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Menominee County, 42.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector (Urban Institute, Debt in America, August 2025). That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Menominee County's score
In Menominee County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 89.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 16.4%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 86.2.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Menominee County does better than most counties on one measure: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (118.3, 2025).
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Menominee County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 89.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind16.4% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a credit card behind7.7% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.8% · Q4 202592nd percentile
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- 86.2 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.2% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average4.9% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202678th percentile
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- 85.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line38.5% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability16.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,423 · 202487th percentile
- People below the poverty line24.4% · 202495th percentile
- People without health insurance20.5% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
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- 74.7 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.2% · fiscal year 202772nd percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent22.7% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
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- 70.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector42.6% · August 202595th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people118.3 · 202546th percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Menominee County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Menominee County
Wisconsin
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Menominee County in 2024, pay from work was 46 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 18 cents. Benefit checks were 36 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
That split has held roughly steady since 1989, when benefit checks were 32 cents of every dollar.
In Menominee County, pay from work still brings in most of the money
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Menominee County, Wisconsin: 36.3% and 46.1% in 2024. Yearly, 1989–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 36.3% of all personal income in Menominee County, Wisconsin (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Menominee County, 16.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Menominee County has changed
The number of people living in Menominee County grew by about 11% between 1989 and 2024, from 3,861 to 4,286. The number of jobs located there grew by about 84% from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 9.3% in 1990 to 5.1% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1989 3,861 | 2024 4,286 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 1,086 | 2024 2,002 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 34.1% | 2024 24.4% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1993 $16,276 | 2024 $52,423 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1989 32.4% | 2024 36.3% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Menominee County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 4,562. The 2020 Census counted 4,255, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
1959
Created on July 3, 1959 from the northeastern portion of seven townships of Shawano County and the western three townships of Oconto County, in anticipation of the termination of the Menominee Indian Reservation in 1961. Wikipedia
1984
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Tornado: $2.7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Thunderstorm wind: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Flood: one death. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1976
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Menominee County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Menominee County beside its neighbors
Menominee County scores higher than all three counties that border it. Of the group, Menominee County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (36.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menominee County, WI | 96 | 24.4% | 36.3% |
| Langlade County, WI | 35 | 14.3% | 30.9% |
| Shawano County, WI | 14 | 10.8% | 24.9% |
| Oconto County, WI | 5 | 8.5% | 23.5% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Menominee County the poorest county in Wisconsin?
Yes, Menominee County's poverty rate was 24.4% in 2024, the highest of 72 counties in Wisconsin (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Menominee County ranks 1st of 72 in the state.
Menominee County in photographs
Places in Menominee County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Looking at the Menominee Village/Tribal hall in w:Keshena, Wisconsin.
The Menominee County Courthouse and county offices in Keshena, Menominee County, Wisconsin.
Menominee County, Wisconsin: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Menominee County, Wisconsin?
24.4% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in four people. Among children it was 38.5%.
Is Menominee County the poorest county in Wisconsin?
Yes, Menominee County's poverty rate was 24.4% in 2024, the highest of 72 counties in Wisconsin (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Menominee County ranks 1st of 72 in the state.
What is the population of Menominee County, Wisconsin?
About 4,286 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 4,255, 93% of the county's peak of 4,562 in 2000.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Menominee County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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Disability Rights Wisconsin
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,313 approved agencies 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 Menominee County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Menominee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.