About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Ottawa County, Kansas, have a job
In Ottawa County, 13.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ottawa County's score
In Ottawa County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 53.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 15.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ottawa 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, Ottawa County is worse off than most counties on people with a credit card behind (7.6%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 53.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.2% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.0% · second quarter of 202629th percentile
-
- 48.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.1% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people137.5 · 202554th percentile
-
- 45.1 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 rent22.0% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.5% · fiscal year 202717th percentile
-
- 26.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.9% · 202414th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.3% · 202414th percentile
- People with a disability12.7% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance6.6% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,597 · 202447th percentile
-
- 15.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202621st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.3% · 2020 to 20249th 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 Ottawa 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 Ottawa County, 21.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ottawa County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ottawa County had its largest rise, from 11.5% in 1974 to 16.5% in 1979.
In Ottawa County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 25.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Ottawa County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ottawa County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.1% in 2013 to 6.7% in 2014.
The share of households in Ottawa County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen to 7.4%
Low on the chart: 2.9% 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, Ottawa County, Kansas.
How Ottawa County has changed
Ottawa County's population rose most sharply after its 1994 low, from 5,703 in 1994 to 6,106 in 1999.
Ottawa County's population fell 6% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 6,216 in 1969. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ottawa County, Kansas.
The number of jobs located in Ottawa County rose most sharply from its first year (1,190 in 1990) to 1,463 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Ottawa County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 1,463 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ottawa County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.8% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.0% | 2024 8.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,903 | 2024 $67,597 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Ottawa County's history
1860
Established February 27, 1860. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 11,811. The 2020 Census counted 5,735, 49% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
A tornado in September 1973 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
A tornado in September 1973 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A tornado in May 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A flood in September 2025 did $3.59 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ottawa County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ottawa County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Ottawa County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ottawa County ranks 5th of the seven; Lincoln County is highest, at 32.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saline County, KS | 35 | 10.2% | 21.3% |
| Dickinson County, KS | 29 | 8.5% | 29.5% |
| Ottawa County, KS | 28 | 8.9% | 25.6% |
| Clay County, KS | 26 | 10.2% | 28.0% |
| Lincoln County, KS | 25 | 11.6% | 32.5% |
| Cloud County, KS | 21 | 13.2% | 29.9% |
| Mitchell County, KS | 4 | 9.6% | 23.9% |
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 Ottawa County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Ottawa County's poverty rate was 8.9% in 2024, 90th highest of 105 in Kansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Riley County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Ottawa County ranks 43rd of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ottawa 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.
-
Kansas Legal Services
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 Ottawa 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 Ottawa County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.