About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Le Flore County, Oklahoma, are not working
In Le Flore County, 30.2% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 88% of U.S. counties.
What drives Le Flore County's score
In Le Flore County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 84.8. About one in six people (17.4%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a higher share than in 93% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 81.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Le Flore 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.
Le Flore County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.2% · 202484th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.9% · 202471st percentile
- People with a disability21.3% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance17.4% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,370 · 202487th percentile
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- 81.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202672nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.2% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
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- 80.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.0% · August 202581st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people217.8 · 202579th percentile
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- 77.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.4% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.8% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.6% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 45.1 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 rent15.9% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202753rd 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 Le Flore 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 Le Flore County, 17.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Le Flore County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Le Flore County had its largest rise, from 26.9% in 2004 to 32.7% in 2009.
In Le Flore County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 37.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Le Flore County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Le Flore County getting SNAP food aid rose by about a third to 20.9%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2009 to 2010, reaching 17.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Le Flore County, Oklahoma.
How Le Flore County has changed
Le Flore County's population had its largest rise, from 35,664 in 1974 to 40,262 in 1979.
Le Flore County's population rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 49,854
High on the chart: 49,989 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Le Flore County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Le Flore County rose most sharply from its first year (8,623 in 1990) to 10,178 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Le Flore County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 13,088 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Le Flore County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.6% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.7% | 2024 19.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,685 | 2024 $52,370 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Le Flore County's history
1838
Fort Coffee Academy converted from Army fort by Methodist Church for missionary school. Wikipedia
1845
New Hope Seminary for Girls established 1845 in Le Flore County by Methodist Church. Wikipedia
1863
Battle of Devil's Backbone fought September 1, 1863 near Pocola between Union and Confederate forces. Wikipedia
1886
Coal mining and timber production attracted railroad construction from 1886 in Le Flore County. Wikipedia
1907
Founded in 1907. Wikipedia
1961
A tornado in May 1961 killed 16 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in March 1976 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1976
A tornado in March 1976 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 50,384. The 2020 Census counted 48,129, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
2015
A flood in May 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
32 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Le Flore County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Le Flore County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Le Flore County, in Oklahoma and Arkansas, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Le Flore County ranks 5th of the nine; Latimer County is highest, at 44.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sequoyah County, OK | 92 | 19.6% | 38.9% |
| Le Flore County, OK | 88 | 19.2% | 37.4% |
| Scott County, AR | 88 | 20.3% | 33.6% |
| Latimer County, OK | 87 | 21.1% | 44.8% |
| McCurtain County, OK | 85 | 21.2% | 35.1% |
| Haskell County, OK | 84 | 20.9% | 40.1% |
| Pushmataha County, OK | 82 | 18.8% | 44.8% |
| Sebastian County, AR | 71 | 12.9% | 26.2% |
| Polk County, AR | 70 | 17.7% | 37.2% |
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 Le Flore County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Le Flore County's poverty rate was 19.2% in 2024, 21st 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, Le Flore County ranks 11th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Le Flore 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 Le Flore 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 Le Flore County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.