In Apache County, Arizona, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2019
In 2024, 51 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Apache County's score
In Apache County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 99.2. About two in five adults aged 25 to 54 (44.9%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 99% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 92.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Apache 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.
Apache County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (35.4, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (7.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 99.2 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year8.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202698th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working44.9% · 2020 to 202499th percentile
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- 92.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.5% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind16.4% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score63.6% · second quarter of 202698th percentile
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- 82.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line29.3% · 202498th percentile
- Children below the poverty line37.6% · 202497th percentile
- People with a disability13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance18.2% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$43,939 · 202497th percentile
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- 51.5 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 rent7.6% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.3% · fiscal year 202795th percentile
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- 50.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector42.3% · August 202596th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people35.4 · 20254th 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 Apache 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 Apache County, 16.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Apache County
Arizona
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Apache County, benefit checks have brought in more than pay since 2019
In Apache County, Arizona, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 51.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Apache County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 20.2% in 2010 to 22.7% in 2011.
The share of households in Apache County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half to 30.5%, the highest on the chart
Low on the chart: 20.2% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Apache County, Arizona.
How Apache County has changed
Apache County's population had its largest rise, from 40,271 in 1974 to 52,122 in 1979.
Apache County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 71,008 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Apache County, Arizona.
The number of jobs located in Apache County had its largest rise, from 15,552 in 1995 to 18,550 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Apache County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 19,330 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Apache County, Arizona.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.0% | 2025 7.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 41.1% | 2024 29.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,446 | 2024 $43,939 |
The table uses 7.9% for 2025; the score uses 8.3% 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 Apache County's history
1864
Solomon Barth salt trade from Zuni territory. Wikipedia
2006
Lightning in August 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in July 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 71,518. The 2020 Census counted 66,021, 92% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
Lightning in July 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Lightning in September 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Apache County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Apache County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Apache County, in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, two score higher. Of the group, Apache County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (51.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cibola County, NM | 95 | 25.9% | 41.0% |
| McKinley County, NM | 95 | 26.2% | 41.3% |
| Apache County, AZ | 90 | 29.3% | 51.0% |
| Navajo County, AZ | 89 | 22.7% | 45.8% |
| San Juan County, NM | 80 | 18.2% | 29.5% |
| Catron County, NM | 76 | 19.0% | 43.6% |
| San Juan County, UT | 62 | 19.5% | 29.6% |
| Graham County, AZ | 60 | 19.3% | 36.9% |
| Greenlee County, AZ | 28 | 9.8% | 25.4% |
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 Apache County the poorest county in Arizona?
Yes, Apache County's poverty rate was 29.3% in 2024, the highest of 15 counties in Arizona (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Apache County ranks 1st of 15 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Apache 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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Southern Arizona Legal Aid (SALA)
Legal aid
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DNA-People's Legal Services
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 Apache 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 Apache County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.