Unemployment in Yuma County, Arizona, is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties
In Yuma County, 14.5% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Yuma County's score
In Yuma County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 83.2. Income and the safety net comes next, at 63.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Yuma 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.
Yuma County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (13.6%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a car or retail loan behind (4.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.2 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year14.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202699th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.5% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
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- 63.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.6% · 202473rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.1% · 202476th percentile
- People with a disability13.6% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- People without health insurance14.0% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,906 · 202455th percentile
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- 59.2 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 rent17.6% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.0% · fiscal year 202771st percentile
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- 54.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.4% · August 202550th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people142.6 · 202557th percentile
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- 53.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.8% · second quarter of 202655th 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 Yuma 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 Yuma County, 20.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Yuma County
Arizona
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Yuma County, benefit checks' share of income has grown since 1969, reaching 28.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Yuma County, Arizona, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Yuma County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (13.9% in 2009) to 16.9% in 2010.
The share of households in Yuma County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 18.3%
Low on the chart: 13.9% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Yuma County, Arizona.
How Yuma County has changed
Yuma County's population had its largest rise, from 127,975 in 1994 to 155,665 in 1999.
Yuma County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 220,310, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 85,373. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Yuma County, Arizona.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Yuma County doubled to 71,265, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 64,777. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Yuma County, Arizona.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 20.6% | 2025 14.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.1% | 2024 16.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,972 | 2024 $64,906 |
The table uses 14.0% for 2025; the score uses 14.5% 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 Yuma County's history
1982
Yuma County was one of four original Arizona counties created by the 1st Arizona Territorial Legislature; original boundaries remained until 1982 when La Paz County was created. Wikipedia
1993
A thunderstorm in September 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A thunderstorm in September 2007 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A thunderstorm in August 2010 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A thunderstorm in August 2010 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 203,881, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1983
6 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Yuma County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Yuma County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Yuma County, in Arizona and California, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Yuma County ranks 3rd of the five; La Paz County is highest, at 43.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial County, CA | 89 | 18.8% | 30.0% |
| La Paz County, AZ | 76 | 18.7% | 43.0% |
| Yuma County, AZ | 71 | 16.6% | 28.2% |
| Pima County, AZ | 69 | 13.8% | 26.0% |
| Maricopa County, AZ | 56 | 10.4% | 16.1% |
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 Yuma County the poorest county in Arizona?
No, Yuma County's poverty rate was 16.6% in 2024, 7th 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, Yuma County ranks 7th of 15 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Yuma 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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Western Arizona Council of Governments (WACOG)
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Community Legal Services (CLS)
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 Yuma County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.