About one in six people with a credit file in Pondera County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Pondera County, 15.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 79% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pondera County's score
In Pondera County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 65.5. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 21.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pondera 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, Pondera County is worse off than most counties on adults 25 to 54 not working (28.9%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (23.9%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 65.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.8% · 202469th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.0% · 202468th percentile
- People with a disability19.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance8.2% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,135 · 202460th percentile
-
- 63.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.9% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
-
- 43.0 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 rent8.2% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.9% · fiscal year 202777th percentile
-
- 23.5 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 behind1.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.2% · second quarter of 202643rd percentile
-
- 21.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.6% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202520th 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 Pondera 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 Pondera County, 21.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pondera County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Pondera County had its largest rise, from 16.0% in 1989 to 21.2% in 1994.
In Pondera County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 22.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Pondera County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pondera County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 11.7% in 2019 to 8.7% in 2020.
The share of households in Pondera County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen to 9.0%
Low on the chart: 8.7% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pondera County, Montana.
How Pondera County has changed
Pondera County's population fell 9% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1999 and 2004
High on the chart: 6,878 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pondera County, Montana.
The number of jobs located in Pondera County had its largest rise, from 1,692 in 1995 to 1,885 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Pondera County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 1,885 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pondera County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.1% | 2024 15.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,440 | 2024 $63,135 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Pondera County's history
1919
Founded April 1, 1919. Wikipedia
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 7,653. The 2020 Census counted 5,898, 77% of the peak. Census Bureau
1994
A thunderstorm in June 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1975
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pondera County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pondera County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Pondera County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pondera County ranks 4th of the seven; Glacier County is highest, at 29.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glacier County, MT | 90 | 25.9% | 29.3% |
| Pondera County, MT | 38 | 15.8% | 22.0% |
| Chouteau County, MT | 37 | 13.8% | 23.2% |
| Toole County, MT | 22 | 15.6% | 17.9% |
| Liberty County, MT | 20 | 14.6% | 19.8% |
| Flathead County, MT | 20 | 8.6% | 17.8% |
| Teton County, MT | 14 | 14.0% | 23.3% |
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 Pondera County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Pondera County's poverty rate was 15.8% in 2024, 8th 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, Pondera County ranks 15th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pondera 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 Legal Services Association (MLSA)
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 Pondera 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 Pondera County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.