Wisconsin County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 72 counties in Wisconsin, scored 0–100 across five domains. Mean score: 33.1. 2counties are in Serious or Crisis.
Data: Census, BLS, Urban Institute, HUD, US Courts | Scores as of 2026-03-26
Wisconsin Snapshot
72 Counties Scored
33.1 Mean Score
32.6 Median Score
75.4 Menominee County Most Distressed
19.4 Iowa County Least Distressed
2 Serious 1 Elevated 19 Normal 50 Healthy
Zone Distribution Wisconsin County Map
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Healthy Normal Elevated Serious Crisis
All 72 Wisconsin counties colored by distress zone. Hover for details; click released counties for full reports.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Wisconsin's 72 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Wisconsin Counties
72 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Zone | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 175 | Menominee County | 75.4 | Serious | Consumer Credit Distress |
| 2 | 521 | Milwaukee County | 67.6 | Serious | Legal Distress |
| 3 | 1,362 | Kenosha County | 53.6 | Elevated | Legal Distress |
| 4 | 1,596 | Racine County | 49.6 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 5 | 1,624 | Rock County | 49.2 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 6 | 1,762 | Adams County | 47.3 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 7 | 1,835 | Iron County | 46.1 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 8 | 2,038 | Rusk County | 42.5 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 9 | 2,098 | Jackson County | 41.5 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 10 | 2,228 | Ashland County | 39.4 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 11 | 2,248 | Waupaca County | 39.1 | Normal | Housing Cost Burden |
| 12 | 2,252 | Forest County | 39.1 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 13 | 2,265 | Sawyer County | 38.9 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 14 | 2,299 | Walworth County | 38.2 | Normal | Housing Cost Burden |
| 15 | 2,338 | Douglas County | 37.5 | Normal | Economic Vitality |
| 16 | 2,353 | Sauk County | 37.3 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 17 | 2,400 | Juneau County | 36.4 | Normal | Structural Poverty |
| 18 | 2,404 | Monroe County | 36.4 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 19 | 2,433 | Waushara County | 35.8 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 20 | 2,463 | Grant County | 35.2 | Normal | Housing Cost Burden |
| 21 | 2,464 | Green Lake County | 35.2 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 22 | 2,469 | Marquette County | 35.1 | Normal | Legal Distress |
| 23 | 2,475 | Dane County | 35.0 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 24 | 2,488 | Langlade County | 34.8 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 25 | 2,493 | Lincoln County | 34.7 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 26 | 2,533 | Price County | 33.8 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 27 | 2,554 | Winnebago County | 33.6 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 28 | 2,556 | Burnett County | 33.6 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 29 | 2,560 | Washburn County | 33.5 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 30 | 2,561 | Wood County | 33.5 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 31 | 2,564 | La Crosse County | 33.4 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 32 | 2,576 | Brown County | 33.1 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 33 | 2,579 | Pierce County | 33.1 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 34 | 2,581 | Fond du Lac County | 33.1 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 35 | 2,588 | Shawano County | 32.9 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 36 | 2,602 | Jefferson County | 32.7 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 37 | 2,614 | Marathon County | 32.5 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 38 | 2,646 | Dunn County | 32.1 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 39 | 2,691 | Crawford County | 31.1 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 40 | 2,697 | Dodge County | 31.0 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 41 | 2,704 | Richland County | 31.0 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 42 | 2,713 | Barron County | 30.8 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 43 | 2,715 | Marinette County | 30.8 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 44 | 2,721 | Eau Claire County | 30.7 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 45 | 2,748 | Polk County | 30.2 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 46 | 2,794 | Oneida County | 29.2 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 47 | 2,831 | Clark County | 28.4 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 48 | 2,847 | Bayfield County | 28.0 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 49 | 2,856 | Portage County | 27.9 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 50 | 2,857 | Taylor County | 27.9 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 51 | 2,864 | Oconto County | 27.7 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 52 | 2,873 | Chippewa County | 27.4 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 53 | 2,874 | Columbia County | 27.4 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 54 | 2,890 | Trempealeau County | 27.1 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 55 | 2,898 | Vernon County | 26.9 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 56 | 2,918 | Sheboygan County | 26.3 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 57 | 2,943 | Manitowoc County | 25.6 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 58 | 2,954 | Washington County | 25.4 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 59 | 2,958 | Waukesha County | 25.3 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 60 | 2,960 | Outagamie County | 25.2 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 61 | 2,971 | Lafayette County | 24.8 | Healthy | Legal Distress |
| 62 | 2,980 | Florence County | 24.4 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 63 | 2,982 | Vilas County | 24.4 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 64 | 2,985 | St. Croix County | 24.3 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 65 | 2,998 | Door County | 23.6 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 66 | 3,022 | Kewaunee County | 22.6 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 67 | 3,024 | Green County | 22.5 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 68 | 3,029 | Buffalo County | 22.1 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 69 | 3,030 | Pepin County | 22.1 | Healthy | Structural Poverty |
| 70 | 3,044 | Ozaukee County | 21.3 | Healthy | Housing Cost Burden |
| 71 | 3,059 | Calumet County | 20.7 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
| 72 | 3,086 | Iowa County | 19.4 | Healthy | Economic Vitality |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using PCA-weighted percentile-rank scoring across five statistically derived dimensions: Consumer Credit Distress, Housing Cost Burden, Structural Poverty, Economic Vitality, and Legal Distress. A score of 50 means the county falls at the national median. Higher scores indicate greater household financial distress.
Crisis (≥80) — Among the most distressed counties in the country
Serious (65–80) — More distressed than roughly 80% of counties
Elevated (50–65) — More distressed than roughly half of counties
Normal (35–50) — Near the national median
Healthy (<35) — Less distressed than most counties