In Williams County, North Dakota, benefit checks make up only 10 cents of every dollar of income
In Williams County, 9.5% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 82% of U.S. counties.
What drives Williams County's score
In Williams County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 64.2. Jobs are the lowest part, at 9.2. Unemployment averaged 2.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Williams 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, Williams County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (11.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 64.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.5% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.6% · August 202568th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.1% · second quarter of 202656th percentile
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- 47.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.3% · August 202561st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people94.6 · 202533rd percentile
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- 22.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.9% · 20247th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.7% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability11.1% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- People without health insurance11.5% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$98,038 · 20246th percentile
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- 9.8 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 rent6.9% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.0% · fiscal year 202713th percentile
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- 9.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20267th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.7% · 2020 to 202410th 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 Williams 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 Williams County, 9.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Williams County
North Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Williams County fell most sharply on the way to its 2014 low, from 12.1% in 2009 to 5.0% in 2014.
In Williams County, pay from work still brings in about seven times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Williams County, North Dakota, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Williams County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 5.6% in 2009 to 3.7% in 2010.
The share of households in Williams County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 3.7% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Williams County, North Dakota.
How Williams County has changed
Williams County's population doubled to 40,763, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2009 and 2014
High on the chart: 40,763 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Williams County, North Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Williams County had its largest rise, from 16,014 in 2010 to 36,079 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Williams County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 36,079 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Williams County, North Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.5% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.6% | 2024 7.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,078 | 2024 $98,038 |
The table uses 2.8% for 2025; the score uses 2.7% 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 Williams County's history
1891
March 2, 1891 (created) December 8, 1891 (organized). Wikipedia
1990
A thunderstorm in June 1990 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Bakken formation predicted to produce more oil than Prudhoe Bay by 2012. Wikipedia
2014
A thunderstorm in September 2014 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 40,950, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
Hail in June 2021 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Williams County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Williams County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Williams County, in North Dakota and Montana, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Williams County ranks 7th of the eight; Roosevelt County is highest, at 36.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roosevelt County, MT | 74 | 22.8% | 36.4% |
| Mountrail County, ND | 34 | 11.7% | 13.7% |
| Sheridan County, MT | 27 | 12.4% | 27.4% |
| McKenzie County, ND | 22 | 8.2% | 7.4% |
| Williams County, ND | 17 | 7.9% | 9.5% |
| Divide County, ND | 12 | 11.6% | 25.9% |
| Richland County, MT | 10 | 9.8% | 14.6% |
| Burke County, ND | 8 | 9.7% | 14.8% |
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 Williams County the poorest county in North Dakota?
No, Williams County's poverty rate was 7.9% in 2024, 52nd 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, Williams County ranks 9th of 53 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Williams 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.
Download the CSV for Williams 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 Williams County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.