About one in five people with a credit file in Mineral County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Mineral County, 19.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 65% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mineral County's score
In Mineral County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 77.1. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 20.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 39.3 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mineral 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, Mineral County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (27.3%, fiscal year 2027) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (4.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.1 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 rent20.2% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income27.3% · fiscal year 202791st percentile
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- 59.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.6% · 202445th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability18.2% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- People without health insurance9.1% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,150 · 202467th percentile
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- 57.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.1% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
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- 31.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.8% · August 202528th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.6% · second quarter of 202621st percentile
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- 20.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector19.2% · August 202535th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people39.3 · 20255th 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 Mineral 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 Mineral County, 28.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mineral County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Mineral County had its largest rise, from 23.9% in 1989 to 30.1% in 1994.
In Mineral County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 36% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Mineral County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mineral County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (9.3% in 2009) to 12.8% in 2010.
The share of households in Mineral County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen to 13.7%
Low on the chart: 9.3% 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, Mineral County, Montana.
How Mineral County has changed
Mineral County's population nearly doubled to 5,195, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 5,195. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mineral County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Mineral County rose 14% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
High on the chart: 1,203 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mineral County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.9% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.5% | 2024 12.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,469 | 2024 $61,150 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Mineral County's history
1860
Several thousand miners converged on Cedar Creek in 1860s and 70s. Wikipedia
1871
One of largest gold strikes in the region, post office established 1871. Wikipedia
1914
Founded 1914. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 4,535, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
A flood in December 2025 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mineral County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mineral County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Mineral County, in Montana and Idaho, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mineral County ranks 3rd of the five; Clearwater 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% |
| Clearwater County, ID | 57 | 15.2% | 37.1% |
| Mineral County, MT | 48 | 12.6% | 33.9% |
| Missoula County, MT | 18 | 9.2% | 15.9% |
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 Mineral County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Mineral County's poverty rate was 12.6% in 2024, 26th 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, Mineral County ranks 11th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mineral 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 Mineral 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 Mineral County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.