About one in five people in Garfield County, Oklahoma, has a disability
In Garfield County, 20.1% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 80% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Garfield County's score
In Garfield County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 63.8. About one in three people with a credit file (32.0%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a higher share than in 79% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 61.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Garfield 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.
Garfield County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.3%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.0% · August 202579th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people122.5 · 202548th percentile
-
- 61.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.8% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.5% · 202446th percentile
- People with a disability20.1% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance12.4% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,358 · 202453rd percentile
-
- 57.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.1% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.5% · second quarter of 202675th percentile
-
- 43.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.1% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
-
- 31.2 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.3% · fiscal year 202724th 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 Garfield 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 Garfield County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Garfield County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Garfield County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Garfield County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Garfield County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 11.2% in 2012 to 12.6% in 2013; 13.5% in 2022 to 14.9% in 2023.
The share of households in Garfield County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 15.6%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2012 to 2013, reaching 12.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Garfield County, Oklahoma.
How Garfield County has changed
Garfield County's population fell most sharply after its 1984 high, from 65,759 in 1984 to 57,178 in 1989.
Garfield County's population rose 11% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 65,759 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Garfield County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Garfield County had its largest drop, from 26,694 in 2015 to 23,353 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Garfield County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 26,694 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Garfield County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.6% | 2024 12.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,622 | 2024 $65,358 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Garfield County's history
1910
Oil discovered in region 1910s boom continued until World War II. Wikipedia
1956
A tornado in April 1956 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1991
A tornado in April 1991 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1994
A thunderstorm in August 1994 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A thunderstorm in June 2007 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 62,846, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1973
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Garfield County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Garfield County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Garfield County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Garfield County ranks 4th of the eight; Kay County is highest, at 31.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kay County, OK | 73 | 16.8% | 31.8% |
| Noble County, OK | 53 | 13.1% | 26.3% |
| Garfield County, OK | 52 | 12.8% | 25.6% |
| Logan County, OK | 49 | 9.3% | 19.8% |
| Grant County, OK | 46 | 15.1% | 25.4% |
| Alfalfa County, OK | 40 | 18.1% | 26.0% |
| Major County, OK | 27 | 12.5% | 25.3% |
| Kingfisher County, OK | 23 | 10.9% | 17.5% |
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 Garfield County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Garfield County's poverty rate was 12.8% in 2024, 65th 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, Garfield County ranks 56th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Garfield 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.
Download the CSV for Garfield 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 Garfield County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.