In Gila County, Arizona, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2014
In 2024, 43 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 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Gila County's score
In Gila County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 81.5. About one in four people (23.0%, 2020 to 2024) has a disability, a higher share than in 92% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 78.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Gila 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.
Gila County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (94.4, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.1% · 202484th percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.5% · 202487th percentile
- People with a disability23.0% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance10.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,678 · 202471st percentile
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- 78.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202668th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.9% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
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- 66.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.7% · August 202569th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.0% · August 202572nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.3% · second quarter of 202657th percentile
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- 65.7 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 rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income27.8% · fiscal year 202792nd percentile
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- 48.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.1% · August 202564th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people94.4 · 202533rd 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 Gila 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 Gila County, 30.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Gila County
Arizona
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Gila County had its largest rise, from 27.3% in 1999 to 33.6% in 2004.
In Gila County, benefit checks have brought in more than pay since 2014
In Gila County, Arizona, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 43.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Gila County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 10.7% in 2010 to 13.1% in 2011; 16.4% in 2013 to 18.8% in 2014.
The share of households in Gila County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.7% 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, Gila County, Arizona.
How Gila County has changed
Gila County's population doubled to 54,073, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 45,407. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Gila County, Arizona.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Gila County rose by about a third to 15,339, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 13,032. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Gila County, Arizona.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.3% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.7% | 2024 19.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,404 | 2024 $59,678 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Gila County's history
1875
Silver and copper mining in Globe. Wikipedia
1881
County was formed from parts of Maricopa and Pinal counties on February 8, 1881. Wikipedia
1931
Old Dominion Copper Company closed. Wikipedia
1990
A thunderstorm in June 1990 killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 53,597. The 2020 Census counted 53,272, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2017
A flash flood in July 2017 killed 10 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
A flash flood in July 2021 did $40 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A flash flood in September 2025 did $25 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Gila County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Gila County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Gila County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Gila County ranks 2nd of the seven; Navajo County is highest, at 45.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Navajo County, AZ | 89 | 22.7% | 45.8% |
| Gila County, AZ | 80 | 19.1% | 43.0% |
| Pinal County, AZ | 70 | 11.0% | 26.2% |
| Coconino County, AZ | 66 | 15.2% | 20.8% |
| Graham County, AZ | 60 | 19.3% | 36.9% |
| Maricopa County, AZ | 56 | 10.4% | 16.1% |
| Yavapai County, AZ | 51 | 9.8% | 31.4% |
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 Gila County the poorest county in Arizona?
No, Gila County's poverty rate was 19.1% in 2024, 4th highest of 15 in Arizona (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Apache County, at 29.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Gila County ranks 5th of 15 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Gila 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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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.
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 Gila County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.