In North Slope Borough, Alaska, benefit checks make up only 10 cents of every dollar of income
In North Slope Borough, 9.7% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives North Slope Borough's score
In North Slope Borough, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 67.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 13.2. About one in 14 renters (7.4%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 93% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in North Slope 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, North Slope Borough is worse off than most counties on people with a subprime credit score (60.3%, Q2 2026) and people without health insurance (13.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 67.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.4% · August 202531st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score60.3% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 44.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.8% · 202463rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.8% · 202448th percentile
- People with a disability12.9% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- People without health insurance13.5% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$102,563 · 20245th or lower percentile
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- 33.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.5% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
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- 22.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.3% · August 202538th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people9.4 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 13.2 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 rent7.4% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.8% · fiscal year 202719th 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 North Slope 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 North Slope Borough, 8.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
North Slope Borough
Alaska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in North Slope Borough had its largest drop, from 12.2% in 2009 to 6.4% in 2014.
In North Slope Borough, benefit checks' share of income has risen by more than half since 1979, reaching 9.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about eight times as much as benefit checks
In North Slope Borough, Alaska, benefit checks' share of income rose by more than half from 1979 to 2024, reaching 9.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in North Slope Borough getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 19.5% in 2021 to 15.1% in 2022.
The share of households in North Slope Borough getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2021 and has since fallen to 14.0%
Low on the chart: 11.9% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, North Slope Borough, Alaska.
How North Slope Borough has changed
North Slope Borough's population had its largest rise, from 3,798 in 1979 to 4,878 in 1984.
North Slope Borough's population tripled from 1979 to 2019, reaching 11,027, then turned down in 2024
High on the chart: 11,027 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, North Slope Borough, Alaska.
The number of jobs located in North Slope Borough had its largest drop, from 15,882 in 2015 to 10,824 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in North Slope Borough was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 15,882 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, North Slope Borough, Alaska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.2% | 2024 14.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $36,674 | 2024 $102,563 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in North Slope Borough's history
1881
United States Army meteorological and magnetic research station established at Utqiaġvik. Wikipedia
1972
Incorporated July 2, 1972. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 11,031, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1986
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered North Slope Borough, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
North Slope Borough beside its neighbors
All two counties that border North Slope Borough score higher than it does. Of the group, North Slope Borough gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area gets the largest, at 40.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northwest Arctic Borough, AK | 74 | 23.8% | 38.2% |
| Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AK | 58 | 19.9% | 40.2% |
| North Slope Borough, AK | 26 | 14.8% | 9.7% |
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 North Slope Borough the poorest county in Alaska?
No, North Slope Borough's poverty rate was 14.8% in 2024, 12th 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, North Slope Borough ranks 18th of 30 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in North Slope 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 North Slope 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 North Slope Borough comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.