Unemployment in Burke County, North Dakota, is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties
In Burke County, 1.9% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 91% of U.S. counties.
What drives Burke County's score
In Burke County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 39.5. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 14.4. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 15.1% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Burke 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.
Burke 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.
- 39.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.7% · August 20257th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people187.4 · 202571st percentile
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- 22.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202517th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202524th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.2% · second quarter of 202626th percentile
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- 21.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.7% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.5% · 202410th percentile
- People with a disability15.3% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- People without health insurance4.4% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$80,825 · 202419th percentile
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- 18.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year1.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.9% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 14.4 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 rent13.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.1% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Burke 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 Burke County, 21.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Burke County
North Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Burke County had its largest drop, from 21.9% in 2004 to 12.7% in 2009.
In Burke County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 14.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Burke County, North Dakota, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Burke County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 4.8% in 2023 to 7.4% in 2024.
The share of households in Burke County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2021, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 2.1% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Burke County, North Dakota.
How Burke County has changed
Burke County's population had its largest drop, from 4,861 in 1969 to 4,226 in 1974.
Burke County's population fell by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 2,154, with its low point on the chart in 2009
Low on the chart: 1,962 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Burke County, North Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Burke County had its largest drop, from 779 in 2015 to 616 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Burke County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 779 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Burke County, North Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 2.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.6% | 2024 9.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,360 | 2024 $80,825 |
The table uses 2.2% for 2025; the score uses 1.9% 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 Burke County's history
1910
July 12, 1910 (created) July 15, 1910 (organized). Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 9,998. The 2020 Census counted 2,201, 22% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Burke County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Burke County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Burke County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Burke County ranks 4th of the six; Divide County is highest, at 25.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mountrail County, ND | 34 | 11.7% | 13.7% |
| Williams County, ND | 17 | 7.9% | 9.5% |
| Ward County, ND | 14 | 10.7% | 15.5% |
| Divide County, ND | 12 | 11.6% | 25.9% |
| Burke County, ND | 8 | 9.7% | 14.8% |
| Renville County, ND | 1 | 9.6% | 19.8% |
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 Burke County the poorest county in North Dakota?
No, Burke County's poverty rate was 9.7% in 2024, 39th highest of 53 in North Dakota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Sioux County, at 29.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Burke County ranks 24th of 53 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Burke 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 Services of North Dakota
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 Burke County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.