Unemployment in Modoc County, California, is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties
In Modoc County, 7.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 59% of U.S. counties.
What drives Modoc County's score
In Modoc County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 87.2. Income and the safety net comes next, at 74.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Modoc 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.
Modoc County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (2.1%, August 2025) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (58.8, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.2 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 working26.4% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 74.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.1% · 202476th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.6% · 202483rd percentile
- People with a disability18.2% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- People without health insurance10.0% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,390 · 202476th percentile
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- 56.4 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 rent17.1% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.7% · fiscal year 202768th percentile
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- 33.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.0% · August 202553rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people58.8 · 202514th percentile
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- 30.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.3% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.1% · August 20256th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.9% · 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 Modoc 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 Modoc County, 31.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Modoc County
California
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Modoc County had its largest rise, from 18.6% in 1989 to 22.4% in 1994.
In Modoc County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 37.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Modoc County, California, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 37.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Modoc County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled to 14.0%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2009 to 2010, reaching 8.2%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Modoc County, California.
How Modoc County has changed
Modoc County's population had its largest rise, from 8,443 in 1979 to 9,630 in 1984.
Modoc County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1994 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 9,835 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Modoc County, California.
The number of jobs located in Modoc County had its largest rise, from 2,806 in 1995 to 3,018 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Modoc County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 3,018 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Modoc County, California.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.6% | 2025 7.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.4% | 2024 17.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,788 | 2024 $57,390 |
The table uses 7.3% 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 Modoc County's history
1874
Modoc County was formed when Governor Newton Booth signed an Act of the California Legislature on February 17, 1874. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 9,686. The 2020 Census counted 8,700, 90% of the peak. Census Bureau
2025
A flood in February 2025 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1964
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Modoc County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Modoc County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Modoc County, in California, Oregon and Nevada, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Modoc County ranks 2nd of the seven; Siskiyou County is highest, at 38.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Klamath County, OR | 85 | 16.6% | 35.8% |
| Lake County, OR | 81 | 17.8% | 33.9% |
| Siskiyou County, CA | 71 | 17.3% | 38.3% |
| Shasta County, CA | 70 | 14.6% | 33.3% |
| Modoc County, CA | 59 | 17.1% | 37.3% |
| Lassen County, CA | 53 | 17.2% | 34.3% |
| Washoe County, NV | 51 | 9.4% | 13.5% |
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 Modoc County the poorest county in California?
No, Modoc County's poverty rate was 17.1% in 2024, 16th highest of 58 in California (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Trinity County, at 23.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Modoc County ranks 27th of 58 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Modoc 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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Legal Services of Northern California
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 Modoc County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.