About one in 12 people in El Paso County, Colorado, lives below the poverty line
In El Paso County, 8.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 58% of U.S. counties.
What drives El Paso County's score
In El Paso County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 72.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 19.8. The typical household earns $90,778 a year (2024), more than in 89% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in El Paso 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, El Paso County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (24.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 72.1 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 rent24.9% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.4% · fiscal year 202757th percentile
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- 49.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.2% · August 202535th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people162 · 202563rd percentile
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- 43.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.0% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
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- 39.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.9% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.6% · second quarter of 202624th percentile
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- 19.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.7% · 202413th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.6% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability12.7% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance7.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$90,778 · 202410th 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 El Paso 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 El Paso County, 14.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
El Paso County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In El Paso County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 18.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In El Paso County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in El Paso County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.5% in 2013 to 9.4% in 2014.
The share of households in El Paso County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 9.3%
High on the chart: 10.0% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, El Paso County, Colorado.
How El Paso County has changed
El Paso County's population had its largest rise, from 228,797 in 1969 to 294,270 in 1974.
El Paso County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 752,772, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 309,248. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, El Paso County, Colorado.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in El Paso County doubled to 307,977, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 237,485. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, El Paso County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.0% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.4% | 2024 8.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,225 | 2024 $90,778 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 El Paso County's history
1861
Created November 1, 1861 as one of the original 17 counties created by the Colorado legislature. Wikipedia
1999
A flash flood in April 1999 did $28 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Hail in June 2002 did $24 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Waldo Canyon fire June 23, 2012 destroyed 347 homes, killed two people, evacuated 32,000; surpassed by Black Forest Fire the following year. Wikipedia
2018
Hail in June 2018 did $169 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
Hail in August 2018 did $172.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 730,395, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered El Paso County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
El Paso County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border El Paso County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, El Paso County ranks 5th of the seven; Fremont County is highest, at 32.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pueblo County, CO | 87 | 15.8% | 32.5% |
| Fremont County, CO | 70 | 15.3% | 32.8% |
| Lincoln County, CO | 41 | 16.9% | 29.6% |
| El Paso County, CO | 41 | 8.7% | 18.9% |
| Teller County, CO | 26 | 8.2% | 23.8% |
| Elbert County, CO | 7 | 5.7% | 12.8% |
| Douglas County, CO | 5 | 4.3% | 8.2% |
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 El Paso County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, El Paso County's poverty rate was 8.7% in 2024, 46th highest of 64 in Colorado (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Crowley County, at 39.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, El Paso County ranks 25th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in El Paso 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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Community Economic Defense Project Cedp- Colorado Springs
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Colorado Legal Services
Legal aid
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Colorado Bar Association — Find a Lawyer directory
Find a lawyer
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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 El Paso 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 El Paso County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.