Alabama County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 67 counties in Alabama, scored 0–100 across five domains. Mean score: 61.3. 40counties are in the two most distressed fifths.
Data: Census, BLS, Urban Institute, HUD, US Courts | Scores as of 2026-03-26
Alabama Snapshot
67 Counties Scored
61.3 Mean Score
60.0 Median Score
90.0 Wilcox County Most Distressed
35.0 Shelby County Least Distressed
24 Most distressed fifth16 Second-most distressed fifth22 Middle fifth5 Second-least distressed fifth
Quintile Distribution Alabama County Map
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Least distressed fifth Second-least distressed fifth Middle fifth Second-most distressed fifth Most distressed fifth
All 67 Alabama counties colored by distress fifth. Hover for details; click released counties for full reports.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Alabama's 67 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Alabama Counties
67 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Distress Fifth | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | Wilcox County | 90.0 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 2 | 19 | Dallas County | 89.3 | Most distressed fifth | Delinquency |
| 3 | 38 | Greene County | 85.8 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 4 | 64 | Perry County | 84.0 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 5 | 128 | Hale County | 80.6 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 6 | 137 | Lowndes County | 80.1 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 7 | 167 | Sumter County | 79.0 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 8 | 183 | Macon County | 78.3 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 9 | 204 | Russell County | 77.3 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 10 | 208 | Bullock County | 77.1 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 11 | 248 | Choctaw County | 75.6 | Most distressed fifth | Delinquency |
| 12 | 296 | Monroe County | 74.4 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 13 | 325 | Mobile County | 73.4 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 14 | 345 | Butler County | 72.8 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 15 | 348 | Conecuh County | 72.8 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 16 | 378 | Pike County | 72.1 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 17 | 437 | Clarke County | 70.6 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 18 | 452 | Barbour County | 70.3 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 19 | 459 | Montgomery County | 70.2 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 20 | 477 | Marengo County | 69.8 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 21 | 494 | Escambia County | 69.6 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 22 | 531 | Calhoun County | 68.7 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 23 | 551 | Pickens County | 68.3 | Most distressed fifth | Delinquency |
| 24 | 597 | Bibb County | 67.7 | Most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 25 | 702 | Jefferson County | 65.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 26 | 709 | Geneva County | 65.5 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 27 | 719 | Etowah County | 65.3 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 28 | 747 | Chambers County | 64.8 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 29 | 779 | Talladega County | 64.2 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 30 | 791 | Tuscaloosa County | 64.0 | Second-most distressed fifth | Delinquency |
| 31 | 835 | Randolph County | 63.1 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 32 | 888 | Crenshaw County | 62.3 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 33 | 975 | Fayette County | 60.7 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 34 | 1,021 | Covington County | 60.0 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 35 | 1,050 | Houston County | 59.5 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 36 | 1,103 | Colbert County | 58.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 37 | 1,108 | Marion County | 58.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 38 | 1,170 | Dale County | 57.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 39 | 1,204 | Walker County | 57.0 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 40 | 1,224 | Washington County | 56.7 | Second-most distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 41 | 1,312 | Lamar County | 55.0 | Middle fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 42 | 1,344 | Clay County | 54.5 | Middle fifth | Delinquency |
| 43 | 1,351 | Chilton County | 54.4 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 44 | 1,356 | Lee County | 54.3 | Middle fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 45 | 1,364 | Coosa County | 54.2 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 46 | 1,375 | Henry County | 54.1 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 47 | 1,409 | Tallapoosa County | 53.5 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 48 | 1,478 | Franklin County | 52.0 | Middle fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 49 | 1,538 | Winston County | 51.2 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 50 | 1,558 | Blount County | 50.7 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 51 | 1,573 | Lawrence County | 50.5 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 52 | 1,587 | Cherokee County | 50.2 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 53 | 1,600 | DeKalb County | 50.0 | Middle fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 54 | 1,675 | Jackson County | 48.6 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 55 | 1,683 | Lauderdale County | 48.5 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 56 | 1,707 | Coffee County | 48.1 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 57 | 1,730 | Cullman County | 47.8 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 58 | 1,746 | Cleburne County | 47.5 | Middle fifth | Delinquency |
| 59 | 1,757 | Morgan County | 47.3 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 60 | 1,834 | Elmore County | 45.9 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 61 | 1,865 | Marshall County | 45.4 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 62 | 1,877 | Autauga County | 45.3 | Middle fifth | Default & Legal |
| 63 | 1,960 | St. Clair County | 43.7 | Second-least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 64 | 1,989 | Baldwin County | 43.3 | Second-least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 65 | 2,107 | Madison County | 41.1 | Second-least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 66 | 2,384 | Limestone County | 35.7 | Second-least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 67 | 2,416 | Shelby County | 35.0 | Second-least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, and the composite is the mean of those domain scores. Higher scores indicate greater household financial distress.
Most distressed fifth — 24 Alabama counties
Second-most distressed fifth — 16 Alabama counties
Middle fifth — 22 Alabama counties
Second-least distressed fifth — 5 Alabama counties
Least distressed fifth — 0 Alabama counties