About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Sanders County, Montana, is not working
In Sanders County, 33.6% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 65% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sanders County's score
In Sanders County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 93.5. Housing costs come next, at 79.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sanders 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.
Sanders County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a credit card behind (2.9%, August 2025) and people with a subprime credit score (29.7%, Q2 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 93.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202691st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.6% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
-
- 79.6 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 rent27.5% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.4% · fiscal year 202766th percentile
-
- 72.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.9% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability23.0% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance13.7% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,864 · 202470th percentile
-
- 27.4 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 people95 · 202533rd percentile
-
- 23.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.7% · second quarter of 202612th 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 Sanders 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 Sanders County, 33.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sanders County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Sanders County had its largest rise, from 28.0% in 2004 to 34.6% in 2009.
In Sanders County, benefit checks brought in more than pay in one of the bars shown, but pay leads in 2024
In Sanders County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sanders County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.4% in 2018 to 12.6% in 2019.
The share of households in Sanders County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 10.4% 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, Sanders County, Montana.
How Sanders County has changed
Sanders County's population doubled to 13,895, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 13,895. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sanders County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Sanders County rose by more than half to 3,364, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 3,364. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sanders County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.2% | 2025 6.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.1% | 2024 13.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,740 | 2024 $59,864 |
The table uses 6.0% for 2025; the score uses 5.8% 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 Sanders County's history
1905
Founded in 1905. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 12,400, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1974
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sanders County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sanders County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Sanders County, in Montana and Idaho, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sanders County ranks 2nd of the eight; Lincoln 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% |
| Lincoln County, MT | 58 | 15.1% | 37.1% |
| Mineral County, MT | 48 | 12.6% | 33.9% |
| Lake County, MT | 47 | 14.9% | 27.8% |
| Bonner County, ID | 39 | 11.0% | 23.8% |
| Flathead County, MT | 20 | 8.6% | 17.8% |
| 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 Sanders County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Sanders County's poverty rate was 13.9% in 2024, 21st 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, Sanders County ranks 5th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sanders 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 Sanders 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 Sanders County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.