About one in seven people with a credit file in Ravalli County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Ravalli County, 14.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ravalli County's score
In Ravalli County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 55.3. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 7.0. People with a car or retail loan behind: 1.9%, August 2025, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ravalli 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, Ravalli County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (23.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 55.3 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 rent15.6% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
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- 53.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.2% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 46.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.9% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.5% · 202430th percentile
- People with a disability18.1% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,460 · 202434th percentile
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- 20.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.3% · August 202515th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people79.6 · 202525th percentile
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- 7.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.4% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.9% · August 20254th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.9% · second quarter of 202610th 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 Ravalli 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 Ravalli County, 27.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ravalli County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ravalli County had its largest rise, from 18.5% in 2004 to 23.5% in 2009.
In Ravalli County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 23.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Ravalli County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ravalli County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 12.3% in 2013 to 14.6% in 2014.
The share of households in Ravalli County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 6.5%
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 11.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Ravalli County, Montana.
How Ravalli County has changed
Ravalli County's population had its largest rise, from 24,857 in 1989 to 30,455 in 1994.
Ravalli County's population more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 48,187, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 24,857. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ravalli County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Ravalli County more than doubled to 13,744, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 7,571. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ravalli County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.5% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.1% | 2024 10.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,132 | 2024 $72,460 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Ravalli County's history
1891
Bitterroot Salish tribe moved to Flathead Reservation. Wikipedia
1893
Created March 3, 1893, carving off a portion of Missoula County. Wikipedia
1996
A flood in May 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Hail in August 2002 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 44,174, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1996
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ravalli County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ravalli County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Ravalli County, in Montana and Idaho, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ravalli County ranks 6th of the seven; Idaho County is highest, at 32.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deer Lodge County, MT | 39 | 12.2% | 30.4% |
| Lemhi County, ID | 29 | 14.2% | 31.2% |
| Ravalli County, MT | 26 | 10.9% | 23.3% |
| Idaho County, ID | 26 | 14.0% | 32.3% |
| Granite County, MT | 25 | 12.2% | 25.0% |
| Missoula County, MT | 18 | 9.2% | 15.9% |
| Beaverhead County, MT | 14 | 12.0% | 23.6% |
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 Ravalli County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Ravalli County's poverty rate was 10.9% in 2024, 42nd 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, Ravalli County ranks 22nd of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ravalli 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 Ravalli 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 Ravalli County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.