Unemployment in Harper County, Oklahoma, is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties
In Harper County, 2.8% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Harper County's score
In Harper County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 52.8. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 7.4. About one in 37 renters (2.7%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Harper 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, Harper County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (14.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 52.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.2% · August 202546th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 peoplenot published for this county; scored at the state median · 202558th percentile
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- 48.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.8% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability14.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- People without health insurance14.1% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,682 · 202450th percentile
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- 46.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.8% · August 20259th 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 score44.0% · second quarter of 202663rd percentile
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- 26.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20268th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.7% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
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- 7.4 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 rent2.7% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.5% · fiscal year 20279th 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 Harper 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 Harper County, 20.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Harper County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Harper County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 20.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Harper County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Harper County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.9% in 2016 to 6.6% in 2017.
The share of households in Harper County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 4.4%
Low on the chart: 2.9% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Harper County, Oklahoma.
How Harper County has changed
Harper County's population fell 38% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 4,117. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Harper County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Harper County fell 5% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2015 and 2020
High on the chart: 1,235 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Harper County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.1% | 2025 2.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.5% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,488 | 2024 $66,682 |
The table uses 2.3% for 2025; the score uses 2.8% 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 Harper County's history
1907
Created in 1907 from northwestern part of Woodward County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 8,189. The 2020 Census counted 3,272, 40% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 2001
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Harper County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Harper County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Harper County, in Oklahoma and Kansas, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Harper County ranks 6th of the seven; Comanche County is highest, at 30.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ellis County, OK | 55 | 12.8% | 21.8% |
| Woodward County, OK | 41 | 15.0% | 26.5% |
| Woods County, OK | 34 | 14.9% | 24.1% |
| Comanche County, KS | 32 | 11.8% | 30.1% |
| Harper County, OK | 26 | 11.2% | 20.5% |
| Clark County, KS | 20 | 12.5% | 24.7% |
| Beaver County, OK | 15 | 12.5% | 15.5% |
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 Harper County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Harper County's poverty rate was 11.2% in 2024, 71st 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, Harper County ranks 74th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Harper 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 Harper 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 Harper County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.