About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, have a job
In Winnebago County, 12.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Winnebago County's score
In Winnebago County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 45.6. Jobs are the lowest part, at 11.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Winnebago 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.
Winnebago 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.
- 45.6 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 rent18.4% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202739th percentile
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- 40.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.2% · August 202523rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people142.7 · 202557th percentile
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- 22.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.4% · 202419th percentile
- People with a disability13.0% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,564 · 202434th percentile
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- 14.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.3% · August 202514th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.5% · second quarter of 202614th percentile
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- 11.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.4% · 2020 to 20247th 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 Winnebago 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 Winnebago County, 17.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Winnebago County
Wisconsin
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Winnebago County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 19.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Winnebago County, Wisconsin, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Winnebago County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.4% in 2012 to 9.8% in 2013.
The share of households in Winnebago County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 9.6%
Low on the chart: 5.8% 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, Winnebago County, Wisconsin.
How Winnebago County has changed
Winnebago County's population had its largest rise, from 139,004 in 1989 to 148,867 in 1994.
Winnebago County's population rose 36% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 173,307. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Winnebago County, Wisconsin.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Winnebago County rose by about a third to 93,391, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 81,727. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Winnebago County, Wisconsin.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.4% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.8% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,462 | 2024 $72,564 |
The table uses 2.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Winnebago County's history
1840
Created 1840, organized 1848. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A thunderstorm in July 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
Hail in May 2000 did $10.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in June 2008 did $18.6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 171,730, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Winnebago County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Winnebago County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Winnebago County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Winnebago County ranks 5th of the seven; Waushara County is highest, at 28.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green Lake County, WI | 23 | 13.6% | 26.2% |
| Waushara County, WI | 19 | 11.1% | 28.3% |
| Waupaca County, WI | 13 | 9.0% | 27.6% |
| Winnebago County, WI | 12 | 9.8% | 19.1% |
| Fond du Lac County, WI | 9 | 9.1% | 20.8% |
| Outagamie County, WI | 3 | 6.6% | 16.4% |
| 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 Winnebago County the poorest county in Wisconsin?
No, Winnebago County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 42nd 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, Winnebago County ranks 34th of 72 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Winnebago 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 Winnebago 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 Winnebago County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.