About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Cibola County, New Mexico, is not working
In Cibola County, 36.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cibola County's score
In Cibola County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 94.3. Late payments on loans come next, at 91.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cibola 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.
Cibola County does better than most counties on one measure: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (59.7, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202691st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working36.5% · 2020 to 202496th percentile
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- 91.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.0% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.9% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score61.1% · second quarter of 202697th percentile
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- 90.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line25.9% · 202496th percentile
- Children below the poverty line33.4% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability21.8% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance11.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$49,500 · 202492nd percentile
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- 75.1 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 rent21.1% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.8% · fiscal year 202782nd percentile
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- 53.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector38.8% · August 202592nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people59.7 · 202514th 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 Cibola 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 Cibola County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cibola County
New Mexico
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Cibola County had its largest rise, from 36.6% in 2017 to 45.1% in 2022.
In Cibola County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1982, reaching 41.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Cibola County, New Mexico, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1982 to 2024, reaching 41.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cibola County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 26.0% in 2016 to 29.1% in 2017.
The share of households in Cibola County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 14.1% 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, Cibola County, New Mexico.
How Cibola County has changed
Cibola County's population had its largest drop, from 28,211 in 1982 to 23,602 in 1987.
Cibola County's population fell 5% from 1982 to 2024, with its low point on the chart in 1992
Low on the chart: 23,386 in 1992. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cibola County, New Mexico.
The number of jobs located in Cibola County had its largest rise, from 6,569 in 2000 to 8,608 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Cibola County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 8,608 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cibola County, New Mexico.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.2% | 2025 5.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1993 28.1% | 2024 25.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1993 $20,026 | 2024 $49,500 |
The table uses 5.5% for 2025; the score uses 5.9% 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 Cibola County's history
1980
Collapse of uranium mining pulled town into depression. Wikipedia
1981
June 19, 1981, from the westernmost four-fifths of Valencia County. New Mexico's youngest county. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 27,213. The 2020 Census counted 27,172, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 2000
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cibola County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cibola County beside its neighbors
Cibola County scores higher than all seven counties that border it, in New Mexico and Arizona. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cibola County ranks 4th of the eight; Apache County is highest, at 51.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cibola County, NM | 95 | 25.9% | 41.0% |
| McKinley County, NM | 95 | 26.2% | 41.3% |
| Socorro County, NM | 92 | 28.5% | 38.7% |
| Apache County, AZ | 90 | 29.3% | 51.0% |
| Valencia County, NM | 79 | 15.0% | 30.8% |
| Catron County, NM | 76 | 19.0% | 43.6% |
| Bernalillo County, NM | 59 | 13.7% | 21.8% |
| Sandoval County, NM | 43 | 9.4% | 21.9% |
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 Cibola County the poorest county in New Mexico?
No, Cibola County's poverty rate was 25.9% in 2024, 4th highest of 33 in New Mexico (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Socorro County, at 28.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cibola County ranks 1st of 33 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cibola 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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New Mexico Legal Aid
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 Cibola 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 Cibola County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.