About one in 11 people with a credit file in Ouray County, Colorado, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Ouray County, 9.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ouray County's score
In Ouray County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 63.5. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 10.0. People with a credit card behind: 1.3%, August 2025, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ouray 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, Ouray County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (24.5%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (12.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.5 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 rent24.5% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd percentile
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- 32.2 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 202654th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.5% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
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- 24.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.1% · 20245th or lower percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.8% · 20248th percentile
- People with a disability13.1% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance12.7% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$98,611 · 20246th percentile
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- 14.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector9.1% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people77.3 · 202523rd percentile
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- 10.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.3% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.3% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score17.2% · second quarter of 20265th or lower 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 Ouray 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 Ouray County, 35.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ouray County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ouray County had its largest rise, from 10.5% in 1979 to 13.3% in 1984.
In Ouray County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 15.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Ouray County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ouray County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 6.9% in 2022 to 4.1% in 2023.
The share of households in Ouray County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 2.1% 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, Ouray County, Colorado.
How Ouray County has changed
Ouray County's population had its largest rise, from 2,926 in 1994 to 3,622 in 1999.
Ouray County's population more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 5,197, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 2,260. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ouray County, Colorado.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Ouray County tripled to 2,194, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 1,118. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ouray County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.7% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.6% | 2024 7.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,252 | 2024 $98,611 |
The table uses 4.3% 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 Ouray County's history
1903
Western Federation of Miners eight-hour day proposal approved by 72% of Colorado voters; San Juan District Mining Association formed 1903 refused reduction in hours or increase in wages, provoked bitter strike. Wikipedia
1996
Lightning in June 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A flash flood in July 1999 did $1.25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 4,874, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1970
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ouray County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ouray County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Ouray County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ouray County ranks 4th of the six; Montrose County is highest, at 27.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montrose County, CO | 40 | 12.9% | 27.2% |
| San Juan County, CO | 38 | 11.7% | 19.2% |
| Hinsdale County, CO | 15 | 8.5% | 21.8% |
| Ouray County, CO | 15 | 7.1% | 15.8% |
| San Miguel County, CO | 10 | 8.0% | 5.3% |
| Gunnison County, CO | 9 | 11.0% | 12.9% |
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 Ouray County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, Ouray County's poverty rate was 7.1% in 2024, 59th 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, Ouray County ranks 49th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ouray 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 Ouray County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.