About 19 in 20 adults aged 25 to 54 in Denali Borough, Alaska, have a job
In Denali Borough, 6.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Denali Borough's score
In Denali Borough, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 50.0. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 5.0. About one in 13 people with a credit file (7.6%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Denali Borough: 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.
Even so, Denali Borough is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (7.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 50.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year7.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working6.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
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- 20.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.6% · 20246th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.2% · 202413th percentile
- People with a disability8.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance10.1% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$92,588 · 20248th percentile
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- 15.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202525th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 20258th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.6% · second quarter of 202611th percentile
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- 8.3 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent9.1% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.8% · fiscal year 20276th percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector7.6% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 20255th or lower 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 Denali Borough 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 Denali Borough, 12.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Denali Borough
Alaska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Denali Borough had its largest rise, from 23.2% in 2016 to 28.7% in 2021.
In Denali Borough, benefit checks' share of income has grown since 1991, reaching 27.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Denali Borough, Alaska, benefit checks' share of income rose by about a third from 1991 to 2024, reaching 27.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Denali Borough getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 4.7% in 2013 to 2.6% in 2014.
The share of households in Denali Borough getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 2.5% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Denali Borough, Alaska.
How Denali Borough has changed
Denali Borough's population had its largest rise, from 1,835 in 1991 to 2,046 in 1996.
Denali Borough's population was at its highest on the chart in 1996 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 2,046 in 1996. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Denali Borough, Alaska.
The number of jobs located in Denali Borough rose most sharply from its first year (560 in 1991) to 1,371 in 1996.
The number of jobs located in Denali Borough was at its highest on the chart in 2006 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 2,320 in 2006. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Denali Borough, Alaska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.4% | 2025 4.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1993 7.0% | 2024 7.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1993 $50,180 | 2024 $92,588 |
The table uses 4.9% for 2025; the score uses 7.2% 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 Denali Borough's history
1990
Incorporated December 7, 1990. Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 1,893. The 2020 Census counted 1,619, 86% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 2000
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Denali Borough, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Denali Borough beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Denali Borough score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Denali Borough ranks 2nd of the five; Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area is highest, at 40.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AK | 58 | 19.9% | 40.2% |
| Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK | 33 | 12.7% | 24.2% |
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK | 26 | 9.0% | 18.8% |
| Fairbanks North Star Borough, AK | 18 | 7.1% | 19.0% |
| Denali Borough, AK | 4 | 7.6% | 27.3% |
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 Denali Borough the poorest county in Alaska?
No, Denali Borough's poverty rate was 7.6% in 2024, 28th highest of 30 in Alaska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Kusilvak Census Area, at 34.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Denali Borough ranks 29th of 30 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Denali Borough
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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Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC)
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 Denali Borough · 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 Denali Borough comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.