In Okaloosa County, Florida, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Okaloosa County, 28.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Okaloosa County's score
In Okaloosa County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 78.0. Jobs come next, at 51.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Okaloosa 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.
Okaloosa County does better than most counties on two measures: median household income ($81,348, 2024) and people below the poverty line (10.6%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.0 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 rent20.1% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.2% · fiscal year 202793rd percentile
-
- 51.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.3% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
-
- 46.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.3% · August 202547th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people116.7 · 202544th percentile
-
- 40.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.6% · 202427th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.8% · 202432nd percentile
- People with a disability15.5% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- People without health insurance11.8% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$81,348 · 202418th percentile
-
- 38.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.5% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.0% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.5% · second quarter of 202634th percentile
-
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 Okaloosa 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 Okaloosa County, 16.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Okaloosa County
Florida
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Okaloosa County had its largest rise, from 13.0% in 2004 to 17.6% in 2009.
In Okaloosa County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 22.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Okaloosa County, Florida, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 22.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Okaloosa County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.2% in 2011 to 9.8% in 2012.
The share of households in Okaloosa County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 7.9%
Low on the chart: 6.2% 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, Okaloosa County, Florida.
How Okaloosa County has changed
Okaloosa County's population more than doubled to 220,483, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 160,420. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Okaloosa County, Florida.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Okaloosa County nearly doubled to 89,542, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 63,590. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Okaloosa County, Florida.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.7% | 2024 10.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,022 | 2024 $81,348 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Okaloosa County's history
1962
A tornado in January 1962 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in December 1967 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1989
A tornado in May 1989 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
A tornado in October 1995 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 211,668, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1970
41 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Okaloosa County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Okaloosa County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Okaloosa County, in Florida and Alabama, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Okaloosa County ranks 3rd of the five; Covington County is highest, at 36.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Escambia County, AL | 89 | 19.7% | 34.1% |
| Covington County, AL | 83 | 18.9% | 36.2% |
| Okaloosa County, FL | 51 | 10.6% | 22.5% |
| Walton County, FL | 50 | 10.6% | 13.4% |
| Santa Rosa County, FL | 44 | 10.3% | 21.5% |
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 Okaloosa County the poorest county in Florida?
No, Okaloosa County's poverty rate was 10.6% in 2024, 50th highest of 67 in Florida (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Hamilton County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Okaloosa County ranks 57th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Okaloosa 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.
-
Legal Services of North Florida
Legal aid
-
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 Okaloosa 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 Okaloosa County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.