In Grady County, Oklahoma, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Grady County, 16.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Grady County's score
In Grady County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 74.1. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 23.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Grady 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, Grady County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (221.4, 2025) and people with a disability (19.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.1% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people221.4 · 202580th percentile
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- 53.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.7% · August 202568th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.1% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.9% · second quarter of 202659th percentile
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- 51.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.9% · 202439th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.7% · 202431st percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance11.8% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,426 · 202430th percentile
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- 43.8 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 202642nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.8% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
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- 23.9 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 rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.3% · fiscal year 20278th 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 Grady 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 Grady County, 17.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Grady County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Grady County had its largest rise, from 17.5% in 2004 to 20.9% in 2009.
In Grady County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 23.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Grady County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Grady County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 10.5% in 2022 to 11.9% in 2023.
The share of households in Grady County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 12.2%
Low on the chart: 9.3% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Grady County, Oklahoma.
How Grady County has changed
Grady County's population doubled to 58,353, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 45,098. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Grady County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Grady County rose by about a third to 13,811, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 13,811. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Grady County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.4% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.7% | 2024 11.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,111 | 2024 $74,426 |
The table uses 3.2% 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 Grady County's history
1907
Organized at Oklahoma statehood in 1907; Chickasha named county seat. Wikipedia
1941
Wilson and Bonfis Flying School opened October 1941 trained U.S. Army Air Force cadets during World War II. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in March 1953 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1970
A tornado in April 1970 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1981
A tornado in April 1981 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in May 1999 did $90 million in property damage and killed 12 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 54,795, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1983
36 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Grady County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Grady County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Grady County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Grady County ranks 5th of the seven; Caddo County is highest, at 36.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comanche County, OK | 83 | 16.9% | 27.8% |
| Garvin County, OK | 81 | 19.4% | 32.9% |
| Stephens County, OK | 76 | 16.1% | 30.3% |
| Caddo County, OK | 65 | 18.9% | 36.0% |
| Grady County, OK | 48 | 11.9% | 23.3% |
| McClain County, OK | 40 | 8.9% | 21.6% |
| Canadian County, OK | 40 | 6.9% | 17.2% |
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 Grady County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Grady County's poverty rate was 11.9% in 2024, 70th 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, Grady County ranks 59th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Grady 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 Grady County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.