About two in five people with a credit file in Atoka County, Oklahoma, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Atoka County, 37.8% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 90% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Atoka County's score
In Atoka County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 87.4. About one in five people (19.2%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 85.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Atoka 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.
Atoka County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (12.3%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (89.5, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.5% · 202485th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.9% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability21.3% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance19.2% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,248 · 202488th percentile
-
- 85.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.6% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.9% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
-
- 70.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.0% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
-
- 61.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.8% · August 202591st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people89.5 · 202530th percentile
-
- 37.0 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 rent12.3% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
-
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 Atoka 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 Atoka County, 18.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Atoka County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Atoka County had its largest rise, from 28.6% in 2004 to 34.2% in 2009.
In Atoka County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 36.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Atoka County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 36.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Atoka County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.9% in 2011 to 17.9% in 2012.
The share of households in Atoka County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 10.4% 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, Atoka County, Oklahoma.
How Atoka County has changed
Atoka County's population rose 39% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 11,895. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Atoka County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Atoka County rose 40% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 2,806. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Atoka County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 34.1% | 2024 19.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,252 | 2024 $52,248 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.4% 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 Atoka County's history
1907
County formed in 1907. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 20,862. The 2020 Census counted 14,143, 68% of the peak. Census Bureau
1933
Oklahoma State Penitentiary Farm (Mack H. Alford Correctional Center) opened 1933. Wikipedia
1982
A tornado in May 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in November 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2026
A tornado in April 2026 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1970
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Atoka County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Atoka County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Atoka County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Atoka County ranks 3rd of the seven; Pushmataha County is highest, at 44.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choctaw County, OK | 89 | 26.4% | 41.6% |
| Johnston County, OK | 83 | 21.5% | 34.8% |
| Pittsburg County, OK | 83 | 18.8% | 34.3% |
| Pushmataha County, OK | 82 | 18.8% | 44.8% |
| Atoka County, OK | 80 | 19.5% | 36.4% |
| Bryan County, OK | 75 | 14.2% | 29.9% |
| Coal County, OK | 65 | 18.6% | 33.6% |
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 Atoka County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Atoka County's poverty rate was 19.5% in 2024, 19th highest of 77 in Oklahoma (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Choctaw County, at 26.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Atoka County ranks 25th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Atoka 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.
-
Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma
Legal aid
-
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 Atoka County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.