About one in eight people with a credit file in Bonner County, Idaho, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Bonner County, 12.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Bonner County's score
In Bonner County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 79.5. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 14.0. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.5%, August 2025, lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Bonner 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, Bonner County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (5.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
-
- 56.0 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent17.8% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.2% · fiscal year 202764th percentile
-
- 47.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.0% · 202430th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.8% · 202432nd percentile
- People with a disability17.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- People without health insurance11.1% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,891 · 202436th percentile
-
- 21.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.9% · August 202510th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people93.2 · 202532nd percentile
-
- 14.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.8% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.5% · August 20258th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.0% · second quarter of 202610th 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 Bonner 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 Bonner County, 26.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Bonner County
Idaho
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Bonner County had its largest rise, from 18.5% in 2004 to 23.3% in 2009.
In Bonner County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 23.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Bonner County, Idaho, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Bonner County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 11.6% in 2017 to 9.8% in 2018.
The share of households in Bonner County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 6.4% 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, Bonner County, Idaho.
How Bonner County has changed
Bonner County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 46,238 in 2019 to 53,955 in 2024.
Bonner County's population more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 53,955, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 26,130. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Bonner County, Idaho.
The number of jobs located in Bonner County had its largest drop, from 16,610 in 1990 to 10,449 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Bonner County was about the same in 2025 as in 1990, after reaching its lowest on the chart in 1995
Low on the chart: 10,449 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Bonner County, Idaho.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.2% | 2025 5.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.5% | 2024 11.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,037 | 2024 $71,891 |
The table uses 5.4% for 2025; the score uses 5.3% 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 Bonner County's history
1896
Timber harvesting drove economy, Northern Pacific Railroad and lumber companies operated from 1896 forward. Wikipedia
1907
Formed February 21, 1907 from Kootenai County. Wikipedia
2006
A flood in November 2006 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A thunderstorm in July 2014 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 47,110, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A thunderstorm in June 2020 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A thunderstorm in September 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1967
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Bonner County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Bonner County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Bonner County, in Idaho, Montana and Washington, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Bonner County ranks 6th of the eight; Lincoln County is highest, at 37.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shoshone County, ID | 76 | 15.4% | 33.3% |
| Sanders County, MT | 65 | 13.9% | 36.5% |
| Lincoln County, MT | 58 | 15.1% | 37.1% |
| Pend Oreille County, WA | 43 | 15.1% | 35.4% |
| Spokane County, WA | 40 | 10.8% | 22.9% |
| Bonner County, ID | 39 | 11.0% | 23.8% |
| Kootenai County, ID | 32 | 9.0% | 19.8% |
| Boundary County, ID | 24 | 12.3% | 28.3% |
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 Bonner County the poorest county in Idaho?
No, Bonner County's poverty rate was 11.0% in 2024, 27th highest of 44 in Idaho (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Madison County, at 24.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Bonner County ranks 11th of 44 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Bonner 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.
-
Idaho Legal Aid Services, Inc.
Legal aid
-
Idaho Volunteer Lawyers Program
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 Bonner 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 Bonner County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.