About one in 11 people in Grand County, Colorado, has a disability
In Grand County, 9.3% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Grand County's score
In Grand County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 71.8. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 7.4. About one in nine people with a credit file (10.8%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Grand 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, Grand County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.2%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (11.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.8 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 rent20.5% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.2% · fiscal year 202779th percentile
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- 22.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.0% · 20248th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.0% · 202413th percentile
- People with a disability9.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance11.5% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$91,454 · 20249th percentile
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- 13.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202617th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.5% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
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- 10.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.3% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score24.6% · second quarter of 20265th or lower percentile
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- 7.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.8% · August 20255th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people50.2 · 20259th 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 Grand 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 Grand County, 20.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Grand County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Grand County had its largest rise, from 8.0% in 2004 to 12.1% in 2009.
In Grand County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 12.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Grand County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Grand County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 7.2% in 2022 to 5.1% in 2023.
The share of households in Grand County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2021 and has since fallen to 3.1%
Low on the chart: 1.6% 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, Grand County, Colorado.
How Grand County has changed
Grand County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size, reaching 16,154, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 12,138. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Grand County, Colorado.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Grand County doubled to 8,194, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 8,194. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Grand County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.1% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.8% | 2024 8.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,424 | 2024 $91,454 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Grand County's history
1874
Created on February 2, 1874, carved out of Summit County. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 15,717, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Grand County. FEMA
Grand County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Grand County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Grand County ranks 5th of the nine; Jackson County is highest, at 18.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County, CO | 25 | 13.0% | 18.2% |
| Larimer County, CO | 24 | 10.5% | 15.1% |
| Boulder County, CO | 18 | 10.6% | 9.7% |
| Eagle County, CO | 14 | 7.9% | 5.8% |
| Clear Creek County, CO | 14 | 8.1% | 12.9% |
| Grand County, CO | 10 | 8.0% | 12.0% |
| Summit County, CO | 10 | 7.7% | 6.6% |
| Routt County, CO | 10 | 6.6% | 7.6% |
| Gilpin County, CO | 8 | 7.3% | 15.1% |
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 Grand County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, Grand County's poverty rate was 8.0% in 2024, 51st 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, Grand County ranks 56th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Grand 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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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.
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 Grand County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.