About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Frontier County, Nebraska, have a job
In Frontier County, 11.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Frontier County's score
In Frontier County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 46.3. Jobs are the lowest part, at 12.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Frontier 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.
Frontier County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 46.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.3% · 202433rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.8% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability18.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,591 · 202450th percentile
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- 30.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.9% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202521st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.4% · second quarter of 202647th percentile
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- 27.0 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 rent14.7% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.3% · fiscal year 202724th percentile
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- 26.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.3% · August 20259th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people116.1 · 202544th percentile
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- 12.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202619th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.4% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Frontier 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 Frontier County, 26.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Frontier County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Frontier County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Frontier County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Frontier County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.9% in 2019 to 11.0% in 2020.
The share of households in Frontier County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2012, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 3.7% in 2012. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Frontier County, Nebraska.
How Frontier County has changed
Frontier County's population had its largest drop, from 3,517 in 1984 to 3,116 in 1989.
Frontier County's population fell by about a third to 2,536, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 3,962 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Frontier County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Frontier County had its largest drop, from 849 in 2005 to 776 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Frontier County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 849 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Frontier County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.3% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.2% | 2024 11.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,962 | 2024 $66,591 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Frontier County's history
1872
Formed in 1872; the courthouse was completed in 1889. Wikipedia
1873
Oglala Dakota band Cut-off Oglala departed Frontier County valley to reside on a reservation in 1873-1874 after murders. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 8,781. The 2020 Census counted 2,519, 29% of the peak. Census Bureau
1997
Hail in June 1997 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A thunderstorm in April 2013 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Frontier County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Frontier County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Frontier County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Frontier County ranks 3rd of the eight; Hitchcock County is highest, at 33.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furnas County, NE | 33 | 13.2% | 32.3% |
| Hitchcock County, NE | 30 | 13.4% | 33.1% |
| Red Willow County, NE | 27 | 11.2% | 25.8% |
| Dawson County, NE | 26 | 10.1% | 20.8% |
| Lincoln County, NE | 24 | 11.0% | 23.0% |
| Frontier County, NE | 15 | 11.3% | 27.6% |
| Hayes County, NE | 12 | 12.9% | 14.8% |
| Gosper County, NE | 4 | 8.9% | 25.2% |
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 Frontier County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Frontier County's poverty rate was 11.3% in 2024, 39th highest of 93 in Nebraska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Garden County, at 16.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Frontier County ranks 42nd of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Frontier 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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Legal Aid of Nebraska
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 Frontier 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 Frontier County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.