About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Portage County, Wisconsin, have a job
In Portage County, 13.8% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Portage County's score
In Portage County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 27.4. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 8.4. People with a credit card behind: 2.0%, August 2025, lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Portage 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.
Portage 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.
- 27.4 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.3% · fiscal year 202715th percentile
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- 25.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.1% · August 202512th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people104.2 · 202538th percentile
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- 19.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.5% · 202426th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.1% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability12.2% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,650 · 202429th percentile
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- 18.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202624th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.8% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
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- 8.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.0% · August 20253rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.7% · second quarter of 20266th 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 Portage 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 Portage County, 18.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Portage County
Wisconsin
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Portage County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 21.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Portage County, Wisconsin, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Portage County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.9% in 2011 to 8.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Portage County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 5.0% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Portage County, Wisconsin.
How Portage County has changed
Portage County's population had its largest rise, from 45,662 in 1969 to 51,471 in 1974.
Portage County's population rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 72,040, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 70,333. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Portage County, Wisconsin.
The number of jobs located in Portage County had its largest rise, from 25,938 in 1990 to 29,172 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Portage County rose 29% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 33,623 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Portage County, Wisconsin.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.3% | 2024 10.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,380 | 2024 $74,650 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Portage County's history
1836
Created from Wisconsin Territory 1836, organized 1844. Wikipedia
1956
A tornado in April 1956 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A thunderstorm in June 2001 did $4.06 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in May 2011 did $1.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 70,377, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
12 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Portage County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Portage County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Portage County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Portage County ranks 5th of the six; Adams County is highest, at 34.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams County, WI | 47 | 12.1% | 34.1% |
| Waushara County, WI | 19 | 11.1% | 28.3% |
| Wood County, WI | 15 | 11.3% | 26.5% |
| Waupaca County, WI | 13 | 9.0% | 27.6% |
| Marathon County, WI | 6 | 7.5% | 18.1% |
| Portage County, WI | 4 | 10.5% | 21.0% |
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 Portage County the poorest county in Wisconsin?
No, Portage County's poverty rate was 10.5% in 2024, 34th 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, Portage County ranks 61st of 72 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Portage 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 Portage 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 Portage County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.