About one in four people in Harmon County, Oklahoma, lives below the poverty line
In Harmon County, 24.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 77% of U.S. counties.
What drives Harmon County's score
In Harmon County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 92.3. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Harmon 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.
Harmon County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (2.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (8.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 92.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line24.5% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line36.5% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability20.3% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- People without health insurance18.7% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$44,893 · 2024top 5%
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- 76.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.6% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people167.2 · 202565th percentile
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- 68.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202562nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202568th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.0% · second quarter of 202674th percentile
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- 49.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20266th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.7% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
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- 45.4 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 rent8.9% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.5% · fiscal year 202780th 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 Harmon 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 Harmon County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Harmon County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Harmon County fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 30.0% in 2009 to 22.8% in 2014.
In Harmon County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 28.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Harmon County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Harmon County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 12.7% in 2010 to 16.4% in 2011.
The share of households in Harmon County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 22.3%
High on the chart: 23.3% in 2014. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Harmon County, Oklahoma.
How Harmon County has changed
Harmon County's population fell by more than half to 2,315, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1969 to 1974, reaching 4,831. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Harmon County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Harmon County fell 17% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2015 and 2020
High on the chart: 780 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Harmon County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 2.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 35.3% | 2024 24.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,182 | 2024 $44,893 |
The table uses 2.2% for 2025; the score uses 2.7% 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 Harmon County's history
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 13,834. The 2020 Census counted 2,488, 18% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1995
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Harmon County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Harmon County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Harmon County, in Oklahoma and Texas, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Harmon County ranks 6th of the seven; Greer County is highest, at 42.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greer County, OK | 86 | 26.0% | 42.5% |
| Hardeman County, TX | 83 | 18.1% | 35.7% |
| Harmon County, OK | 77 | 24.5% | 28.7% |
| Beckham County, OK | 74 | 20.2% | 29.2% |
| Childress County, TX | 58 | 20.0% | 30.6% |
| Jackson County, OK | 54 | 16.4% | 24.7% |
| Collingsworth County, TX | 49 | 16.6% | 32.1% |
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 Harmon County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Harmon County's poverty rate was 24.5% in 2024, 3rd 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, Harmon County ranks 30th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Harmon 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 Harmon 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 Harmon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.