About one in 10 people with a credit file in Fergus County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector

In Fergus County, 9.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.

Photo of Ross Kilburn
Data from
County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026
34th
of 56 counties in Montana
18score /100

Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.

What drives Fergus County's score

In Fergus County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 57.9. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 9.7.

The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Fergus 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, Fergus County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (16.2%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (27.3%, fiscal year 2027).

A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.

  • Housing costs

    Biggest factor
    57.9 of 100

    Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027

    • Renters paying half their income or more in rent
      13.4% · 2020 to 2024
      24th percentile
    • Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income
      27.3% · fiscal year 2027
      91st percentile

  • Income and safety net

    53.1 of 100

    Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey

    • People below the poverty line
      12.3% · 2024
      42nd percentile
    • Children below the poverty line
      14.4% · 2024
      35th percentile
    • People with a disability
      14.6% · 2020 to 2024
      36th percentile
    • People without health insurance
      16.2% · 2020 to 2024
      91st percentile
    • Median household income (lower income, longer bar)
      $63,752 · 2024
      58th percentile

  • Jobs

    23.4 of 100

    Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey

    • Unemployment rate, average over the latest year
      3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
      33rd percentile
    • Adults 25 to 54 not working
      14.3% · 2020 to 2024
      13th percentile

  • Late payments

    11.5 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026

    • People with a credit card behind
      1.2% · August 2025
      5th or lower percentile
    • People with a car or retail loan behind
      1.5% · August 2025
      5th or lower percentile
    • People with a subprime credit score
      33.7% · second quarter of 2026
      24th percentile

  • Collections and bankruptcy

    9.7 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025

    • People with unpaid debt sent to a collector
      9.9% · August 2025
      5th or lower percentile
    • Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people
      59.5 · 2025
      14th 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 Fergus 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 Fergus County, 25.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.

Cents of every dollar of income, 2024

Fergus County

48 29 24

Montana

54 27 19

United States

61 21 18
  • Pay from work
  • Investments and rent
  • Benefit checks
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, 2024. Pay from work is total income minus the other two, so the three add to 100.

Benefit checks' share of income in Fergus County had its largest rise, from 17.7% in 1989 to 21.8% in 1994.

In Fergus County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 23.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks

In Fergus County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income more than 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
0%40%80% 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 0%40%80% 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, Fergus County, Montana American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/montana/fergus-county-mt/
Download data (CSV)

The share of households in Fergus County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2012 low, from 7.3% in 2011 to 5.8% in 2012.

The share of households in Fergus County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a fifth

Low on the chart: 5.8% in 2012. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Fergus County, Montana.

0%5%10% 6.9%7.3% 2009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 0%5%10% 6.9%7.3% 20092011201320152017201920212024
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/montana/fergus-county-mt/
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How Fergus County has changed

Fergus County's population had its largest drop, from 12,853 in 1984 to 12,165 in 1989.

Fergus County's population fell 11% from 1969 to 2019, then turned up in 2024

High on the chart: 13,022 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Fergus County, Montana.

010,00020,000 12,76811,862 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 010,00020,000 12,76811,862 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/montana/fergus-county-mt/
Download data (CSV)

The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.

The number of jobs located in Fergus County rose by about a third to 4,697, the highest on the chart

Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 3,870. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Fergus County, Montana.

02,5005,000 3,5914,697 19901995200020052010201520202025 02,5005,000 3,5914,697 19901995200020052010201520202025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/montana/fergus-county-mt/
Download data (CSV)
MeasureThenNowSource
Unemployment rateBLS LAUS 1990 5.5% 2025 3.5% BLS LAUS
People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE 1989 14.9% 2024 12.3% Census SAIPE
Median household incomeCensus SAIPE 1989 $20,672 2024 $63,752 Census SAIPE

Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.

Dated events in Fergus County's history

  1. 1874

    Fort Lewis was established in 1874 by Company F of the 7th U.S. Infantry to provide military protection for people traveling on the Carroll Trail. Wikipedia

  2. 1879

    The Metis established Lewistown in 1879. Pierre Berger is credited with being the founder of Lewistown, along with his wife and several other families. Wikipedia

  3. 1880

    Gold was discovered in the nearby Judith Mountains in 1880. Wikipedia

  4. 1885

    Founded in 1885. Wikipedia

  5. 1920

    The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 28,344. The 2020 Census counted 11,446, 40% of the peak. Census Bureau

  6. 1942

    During World War II, in 1942 the US Army Air Corps established a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress training base just west of Lewistown. Wikipedia

  7. 1999

    A tornado in August 1999 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database

  8. Since 1975

    10 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Fergus County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA

Fergus County beside its neighbors

Of the eight counties that border Fergus County, seven score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Fergus County ranks 7th of the nine; Blaine County is highest, at 35.1%.

CountyDistress scoreScoreRank in its state Poverty rateBenefit checks, share of incomeBenefit checks
Musselshell County, MT 71 4th of 56 14.5% 32.9%
Blaine County, MT 55 8th of 56 18.1% 35.1%
Wheatland County, MT 53 9th of 56 17.3% 29.8%
Golden Valley County, MT 38 16th of 56 20.2% 33.0%
Chouteau County, MT 37 18th of 56 13.8% 23.2%
Petroleum County, MT 31 20th of 56 14.5% 27.6%
Phillips County, MT 22 29th of 56 15.4% 30.8%
Fergus County, MT 18 34th of 56 12.3% 23.8%
Judith Basin County, MT 11 46th of 56 12.3% 22.9%

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 Fergus County the poorest county in Montana?

No, Fergus County's poverty rate was 12.3% in 2024, 28th highest of 56 in Montana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Glacier County, at 25.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Fergus County ranks 34th of 56 in the state.

If you're behind on your mortgage in Fergus 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.

Montana foreclosure guide →

The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.

Download the CSV for Fergus County · Every U.S. county (CSV)

Cite this Fergus County, Montana, scores 18 on the County Distress Index (data through Sep 2026): less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties · American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/montana/fergus-county-mt/

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 Fergus County comes from, 2024.
  • History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.