About one in 11 people in Mono County, California, has a disability
In Mono County, 9.3% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 88% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mono County's score
In Mono County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 53.5. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 8.0. About one in eight people with a credit file (11.9%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mono 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.
Even so, Mono County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (25.2%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 53.5 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent13.1% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.2% · fiscal year 202784th percentile
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- 36.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202654th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.3% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
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- 22.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.8% · 202416th percentile
- People with a disability9.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$91,667 · 20249th percentile
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- 10.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.4% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.4% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.5% · second quarter of 20267th percentile
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- 8.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.9% · August 20257th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people45.9 · 20258th 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 Mono 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 Mono County, 17.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mono County
California
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Mono County had its largest rise, from 7.0% in 2004 to 9.6% in 2009.
In Mono County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 12.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Mono County, California, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mono County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 5.4% in 2021 to 3.4% in 2022.
The share of households in Mono County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 2.3% 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, Mono County, California.
How Mono County has changed
Mono County's population had its largest rise, from 3,780 in 1969 to 6,769 in 1974.
Mono County's population more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12,991
High on the chart: 14,008 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mono County, California.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Mono County rose by about half to 8,196, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 8,196. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mono County, California.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.6% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,104 | 2024 $91,667 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Mono County's history
1861
Mono County was formed in 1861 from parts of Calaveras, Fresno, and Mariposa Counties. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 14,202. The 2020 Census counted 13,195, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mono County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mono County beside its neighbors
All nine counties that border Mono County, in California and Nevada, score higher than it does. Of the group, Mono County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Mineral County gets the largest, at 42.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esmeralda County, NV | 84 | 14.8% | 27.2% |
| Fresno County, CA | 83 | 18.2% | 27.2% |
| Madera County, CA | 81 | 17.7% | 24.6% |
| Mineral County, NV | 74 | 17.6% | 42.7% |
| Lyon County, NV | 63 | 11.4% | 25.3% |
| Tuolumne County, CA | 63 | 12.7% | 31.6% |
| Alpine County, CA | 41 | 15.8% | 28.9% |
| Inyo County, CA | 29 | 11.2% | 26.1% |
| Douglas County, NV | 23 | 8.2% | 14.9% |
| Mono County, CA | 11 | 9.8% | 12.7% |
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 Mono County the poorest county in California?
No, Mono County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 45th 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, Mono County ranks 58th of 58 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mono 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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California Indian Legal Services (Bishop office)
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 Mono County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.