Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Haskell County, Oklahoma
In Haskell County, 40.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 84% of U.S. counties.
What drives Haskell County's score
In Haskell County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 88.1. About one in six people (16.1%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a higher share than in 91% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 84.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Haskell 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.
Haskell County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (9.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.9% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.2% · 202486th percentile
- People with a disability20.1% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance16.1% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,066 · 202491st percentile
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- 84.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202684th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.4% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
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- 71.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.6% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 71.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.3% · August 202584th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people143.7 · 202557th percentile
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- 36.7 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 rent9.3% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.0% · fiscal year 202762nd 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 Haskell 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 Haskell County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Haskell County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Haskell County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 40.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Haskell County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 40.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Haskell County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.8% in 2011 to 17.3% in 2012.
The share of households in Haskell County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 13.4% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Haskell County, Oklahoma.
How Haskell County has changed
Haskell County's population had its largest rise, from 9,966 in 1974 to 10,857 in 1979.
Haskell County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 12,772 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Haskell County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Haskell County had its largest rise, from 2,366 in 1995 to 3,239 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Haskell County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 3,770 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Haskell County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 12.6% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.6% | 2024 20.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,891 | 2024 $50,066 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Haskell County's history
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 19,397. The 2020 Census counted 11,561, 60% of the peak. Census Bureau
1960
A tornado in May 1960 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
34 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Haskell County, 19 of them for flooding. FEMA
Haskell County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Haskell County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Haskell County ranks 3rd of the seven; McIntosh County is highest, at 45.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muskogee County, OK | 94 | 19.6% | 36.8% |
| McIntosh County, OK | 93 | 18.9% | 45.9% |
| Sequoyah County, OK | 92 | 19.6% | 38.9% |
| Le Flore County, OK | 88 | 19.2% | 37.4% |
| Latimer County, OK | 87 | 21.1% | 44.8% |
| Haskell County, OK | 84 | 20.9% | 40.1% |
| Pittsburg County, OK | 83 | 18.8% | 34.3% |
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 Haskell County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Haskell County's poverty rate was 20.9% in 2024, 12th 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, Haskell County ranks 19th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Haskell 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 Haskell 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 Haskell County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.