About one in 20 people with a credit file in Meagher County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Meagher County, 4.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Meagher County's score
In Meagher County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 52.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 7.5. About one in nine adults aged 25 to 54 (11.0%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Meagher 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, Meagher County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (27.8%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 52.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.2% · 202466th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.7% · 202447th percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance3.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,176 · 202470th percentile
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- 48.9 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 rent4.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income27.8% · fiscal year 202792nd percentile
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- 18.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202516th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202516th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.0% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 12.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector4.9% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202520th percentile
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- 7.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20269th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.0% · 2020 to 20245th 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 Meagher 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 Meagher County, 34.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Meagher County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Meagher County had its largest rise, from 12.6% in 1979 to 20.4% in 1984.
In Meagher County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 29.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Meagher County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Meagher County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 12.4% in 2020 to 7.6% in 2021.
The share of households in Meagher County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 6.3% 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, Meagher County, Montana.
How Meagher County has changed
Meagher County's population had its largest drop, from 2,167 in 1984 to 1,821 in 1989.
Meagher County's population fell 5% from 1969 to 2024, with its low point on the chart in 1989
Low on the chart: 1,821 in 1989. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Meagher County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Meagher County rose by about half to 704, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 634. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Meagher County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.6% | 2024 15.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,731 | 2024 $60,176 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Meagher County's history
1867
Founded November 16, 1867. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 4,190. The 2020 Census counted 1,927, 46% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1975
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Meagher County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Meagher County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Meagher County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Meagher County ranks 2nd of the nine; Wheatland County is highest, at 29.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wheatland County, MT | 53 | 17.3% | 29.8% |
| Cascade County, MT | 37 | 11.6% | 21.9% |
| Broadwater County, MT | 15 | 8.3% | 20.4% |
| Meagher County, MT | 14 | 15.2% | 29.4% |
| Lewis and Clark County, MT | 12 | 7.6% | 19.3% |
| Judith Basin County, MT | 11 | 12.3% | 22.9% |
| Park County, MT | 11 | 9.2% | 19.2% |
| Gallatin County, MT | 8 | 7.1% | 8.7% |
| Sweet Grass County, MT | 6 | 9.8% | 21.6% |
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 Meagher County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Meagher County's poverty rate was 15.2% in 2024, 11th 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, Meagher County ranks 40th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Meagher 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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Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA)
Legal aid
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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.
Download the CSV for Meagher 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 Meagher County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.