About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Beckham County, Oklahoma, are not working
In Beckham County, 31.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Beckham County's score
In Beckham County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 73.6. About one in five people (20.2%, 2024) lives below the poverty line, a higher share than in 87% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 69.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Beckham 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.
Beckham County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (113.4, 2025) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.2% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.9% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability15.9% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- People without health insurance10.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,449 · 202476th percentile
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- 69.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit 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 behind5.7% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.7% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 69.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.5% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
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- 57.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.4% · August 202572nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people113.4 · 202542nd percentile
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- 53.9 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 rent17.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.7% · fiscal year 202760th 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 Beckham 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 Beckham County, 15.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Beckham County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Beckham County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 29.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Beckham County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Beckham County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.3% in 2019 to 14.5% in 2020.
The share of households in Beckham County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2012, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 7.7% 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, Beckham County, Oklahoma.
How Beckham County has changed
Beckham County's population rose 38% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1979 and 1984
High on the chart: 23,952 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Beckham County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Beckham County had its largest drop, from 10,930 in 2015 to 8,483 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Beckham County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 10,930 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Beckham County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.1% | 2024 20.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,732 | 2024 $57,449 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Beckham County's history
1920
Oil and gas development boom, 1920-1930. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 28,991. The 2020 Census counted 22,410, 77% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
Panhandle-Hugoton natural gas and helium field produced 8 trillion cu ft 1973-1993. Wikipedia
2003
A tornado in April 2003 did $1.02 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A tornado in May 2007 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A thunderstorm in May 2009 did $3,500,000 in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A tornado in May 2017 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1986
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Beckham County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Beckham County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Beckham County, in Oklahoma and Texas, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Beckham County ranks 6th of the nine; Greer County is highest, at 42.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greer County, OK | 86 | 26.0% | 42.5% |
| Harmon County, OK | 77 | 24.5% | 28.7% |
| Beckham County, OK | 74 | 20.2% | 29.2% |
| Kiowa County, OK | 73 | 22.2% | 38.4% |
| Washita County, OK | 55 | 16.3% | 33.2% |
| Collingsworth County, TX | 49 | 16.6% | 32.1% |
| Wheeler County, TX | 47 | 13.5% | 34.4% |
| Custer County, OK | 44 | 16.1% | 24.1% |
| Roger Mills County, OK | 24 | 14.1% | 26.0% |
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 Beckham County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Beckham County's poverty rate was 20.2% in 2024, 14th 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, Beckham County ranks 37th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Beckham 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 Services of Oklahoma
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 Beckham 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 Beckham County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.