In Kingfisher County, Oklahoma, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in seven dollars of the typical household's income
In Kingfisher County, 14.9% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Kingfisher County's score
In Kingfisher County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 52.0. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 14.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Kingfisher 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, Kingfisher County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (7.4%, August 2025) and people without health insurance (11.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 52.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.4% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.5% · second quarter of 202651st percentile
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- 39.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.8% · August 202545th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people96.9 · 202534th percentile
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- 35.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.9% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.0% · 202433rd percentile
- People with a disability12.9% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- People without health insurance11.4% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,475 · 202415th percentile
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- 29.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.4% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
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- 14.7 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 rent13.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income14.9% · fiscal year 20275th or lower 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 Kingfisher 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 Kingfisher County, 17.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Kingfisher County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Kingfisher County had its largest drop, from 19.5% in 2009 to 13.4% in 2014.
In Kingfisher County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 17.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Kingfisher County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Kingfisher County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.0% in 2014 to 7.5% in 2015.
The share of households in Kingfisher County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 8.2%
Low on the chart: 6.1% 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, Kingfisher County, Oklahoma.
How Kingfisher County has changed
Kingfisher County's population fell most sharply after its 1984 high, from 16,212 in 1984 to 13,534 in 1989.
Kingfisher County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15,820
High on the chart: 16,212 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Kingfisher County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Kingfisher County rose by more than half to 6,937, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 5,318. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Kingfisher County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 2.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.0% | 2024 10.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,562 | 2024 $83,475 |
The table uses 2.5% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Kingfisher County's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 18,825. The 2020 Census counted 15,184, 81% of the peak. Census Bureau
1967
A tornado in June 1967 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in May 1999 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A thunderstorm in July 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in August 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
34 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Kingfisher County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Kingfisher County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Kingfisher County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Kingfisher County ranks 5th of the six; Blaine County is highest, at 27.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blaine County, OK | 74 | 18.1% | 27.8% |
| Garfield County, OK | 52 | 12.8% | 25.6% |
| Logan County, OK | 49 | 9.3% | 19.8% |
| Canadian County, OK | 40 | 6.9% | 17.2% |
| 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 Kingfisher County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Kingfisher County's poverty rate was 10.9% in 2024, 72nd 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, Kingfisher County ranks 76th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Kingfisher 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 Kingfisher 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 Kingfisher County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.