Unemployment in Dewey County, Oklahoma, is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties
In Dewey County, 2.4% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Dewey County's score
In Dewey County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 64.2. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 10.5. About one in 12 renters (8.3%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 91% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Dewey 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, Dewey County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (10.3%, August 2025) and people without health insurance (12.6%, 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 behind5.5% · August 202550th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.3% · August 202592nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.0% · second quarter of 202649th percentile
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- 61.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.9% · 202447th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.6% · 202447th percentile
- People with a disability19.1% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance12.6% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,276 · 202454th percentile
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- 29.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.6% · August 202540th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people70 · 202519th percentile
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- 26.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.4% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
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- 10.5 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 rent8.3% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.8% · fiscal year 202712th 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 Dewey 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 Dewey County, 19.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Dewey County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Dewey County had its largest rise in the last span, from 18.1% in 2019 to 24.5% in 2024.
In Dewey County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 24.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Dewey County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Dewey County getting SNAP food aid made its largest gain on the way to its 2020 high, from 6.0% in 2019 to 9.2% in 2020.
The share of households in Dewey County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2015, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 3.5% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Dewey County, Oklahoma.
How Dewey County has changed
Dewey County's population had its largest drop, from 6,456 in 1984 to 5,647 in 1989.
Dewey County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 6,456 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Dewey County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Dewey County had its largest rise in the last span, from 1,631 in 2020 to 2,264 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Dewey County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2000, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 1,108 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Dewey County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.0% | 2025 2.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.9% | 2024 12.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,639 | 2024 $65,276 |
The table uses 2.0% for 2025; the score uses 2.4% 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 Dewey County's history
1891
Dewey County was created in Oklahoma Territory in 1891 and was opened to non-Indian settlement on April 19, 1892. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 14,132. The 2020 Census counted 4,484, 32% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
32 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Dewey County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Dewey County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Dewey County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Dewey County ranks 5th of the seven; Blaine County is highest, at 27.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blaine County, OK | 74 | 18.1% | 27.8% |
| Ellis County, OK | 55 | 12.8% | 21.8% |
| Custer County, OK | 44 | 16.1% | 24.1% |
| Woodward County, OK | 41 | 15.0% | 26.5% |
| Dewey County, OK | 29 | 12.9% | 24.5% |
| Major County, OK | 27 | 12.5% | 25.3% |
| 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 Dewey County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Dewey County's poverty rate was 12.9% in 2024, 64th 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, Dewey County ranks 72nd of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Dewey 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.
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 Dewey County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.