About one in 11 people with a credit file in Teton County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Teton County, 9.5% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Teton County's score
In Teton County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 56.3. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 6.2. People with a car or retail loan behind: 1.4%, August 2025, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Teton 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, Teton County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (25.4%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 56.3 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 rent14.1% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.4% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 42.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.0% · 202456th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.3% · 202461st percentile
- People with a disability11.7% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- People without health insurance5.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,349 · 202456th percentile
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- 23.1 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 working18.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 14.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector9.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people77.8 · 202523rd percentile
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- 6.2 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 behind1.4% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.7% · second quarter of 20267th 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 Teton 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 Teton County, 23.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Teton County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Teton County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 23.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Teton County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income tripled 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 Teton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 3.5% in 2010 to 6.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Teton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 4.8%
Low on the chart: 3.2% 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, Teton County, Montana.
How Teton County has changed
Teton County's population rose 4% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1974 and 1979
High on the chart: 6,759 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Teton County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Teton County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 1,802. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Teton County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.6% | 2024 14.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,726 | 2024 $64,349 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Teton County's history
1893
Founded in 1893. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 9,546. The 2020 Census counted 6,226, 65% of the peak. Census Bureau
1994
A thunderstorm in June 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Teton County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Teton County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Teton County, four score higher. Of the group, Teton County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (23.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pondera County, MT | 38 | 15.8% | 22.0% |
| Chouteau County, MT | 37 | 13.8% | 23.2% |
| Cascade County, MT | 37 | 11.6% | 21.9% |
| Flathead County, MT | 20 | 8.6% | 17.8% |
| Teton County, MT | 14 | 14.0% | 23.3% |
| Lewis and Clark County, MT | 12 | 7.6% | 19.3% |
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 Teton County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Teton County's poverty rate was 14.0% in 2024, 20th 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, Teton County ranks 39th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Teton 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.
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 Teton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.