About one in four people in McCurtain County, Oklahoma, has a disability
In McCurtain County, 24.3% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives McCurtain County's score
In McCurtain County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 90.5. Jobs come next, at 83.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McCurtain 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.
McCurtain County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (88.1, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 90.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.2% · 202490th percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.2% · 202486th percentile
- People with a disability24.3% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
- People without health insurance15.0% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,467 · 202491st percentile
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- 83.1 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 working32.3% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
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- 72.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.0% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202565th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score57.5% · second quarter of 202693rd percentile
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- 59.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector36.0% · August 202588th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people88.1 · 202529th percentile
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- 49.7 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 rent16.2% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.8% · fiscal year 202761st 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 McCurtain 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 McCurtain County, 17.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McCurtain County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in McCurtain County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 29.1% in 2004 to 36.3% in 2009.
In McCurtain County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 35.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In McCurtain County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in McCurtain County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 23.3% in 2015 to 21.6% in 2016.
The share of households in McCurtain County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2011 and has since fallen to 21.3%
Low on the chart: 19.0% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, McCurtain County, Oklahoma.
How McCurtain County has changed
McCurtain County's population rose most sharply from its first year (28,365 in 1969) to 36,158 in 1974.
McCurtain County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 36,620 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McCurtain County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in McCurtain County rose by about a third to 12,445, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 12,445. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McCurtain County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.7% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 32.3% | 2024 21.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,869 | 2024 $50,467 |
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 McCurtain County's history
1907
Dense forests cleared and processed within two decades after statehood. Wikipedia
1937
Beavers Bend State Park opened. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 41,318. The 2020 Census counted 30,814, 75% of the peak. Census Bureau
1953
A tornado in April 1953 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
F5 tornado struck the county. Wikipedia
2019
A thunderstorm in October 2019 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2022
A tornado in November 2022 did $35 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2022
A tornado in November 2022 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McCurtain County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
McCurtain County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border McCurtain County, in Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, McCurtain County ranks 6th of the nine; Pushmataha County is highest, at 44.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choctaw County, OK | 89 | 26.4% | 41.6% |
| Le Flore County, OK | 88 | 19.2% | 37.4% |
| Red River County, TX | 86 | 15.0% | 39.3% |
| McCurtain County, OK | 85 | 21.2% | 35.1% |
| Pushmataha County, OK | 82 | 18.8% | 44.8% |
| Bowie County, TX | 82 | 16.2% | 28.1% |
| Little River County, AR | 76 | 16.3% | 34.7% |
| Sevier County, AR | 71 | 15.6% | 25.9% |
| 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 McCurtain County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, McCurtain County's poverty rate was 21.2% in 2024, 10th 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, McCurtain County ranks 17th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McCurtain 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 McCurtain 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 McCurtain County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.