About one in three people with a credit file in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Oklahoma County, 33.0% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 81% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Oklahoma County's score
In Oklahoma County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 79.9. Housing costs come next, at 74.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Oklahoma 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.
Oklahoma County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (14.7%, 2020 to 2024) and median household income ($68,006, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.0% · August 202581st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people214.1 · 202578th percentile
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- 74.0 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 rent24.0% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.3% · fiscal year 202765th percentile
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- 67.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.6% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.4% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.1% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 62.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.2% · 202471st percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.6% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability14.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- People without health insurance13.7% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,006 · 202446th percentile
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- 52.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.1% · 2020 to 202452nd 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 Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma County, 14.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Oklahoma County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Oklahoma County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Oklahoma County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.7% in 2012 to 14.8% in 2013.
The share of households in Oklahoma County getting SNAP food aid rose by about a third from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.8%
High on the chart: 15.1% in 2014. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma.
How Oklahoma County has changed
Oklahoma County's population rose by more than half to 816,490, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 621,481. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Oklahoma County rose by about half to 497,127, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 497,127. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.3% | 2024 16.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,778 | 2024 $68,006 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Oklahoma County's history
1889
Oklahoma City land run April 22 1889 with 10,000 homesteaders settling. Wikipedia
1890
Oklahoma County was formed in 1890 as one of seven counties established by the Organic Act of 1890. Wikipedia
1928
Oil discovered within Oklahoma City limits 1928, including under State Capitol. Wikipedia
1999
A tornado in May 1999 did $450 million in property damage and killed 12 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A tornado in May 2003 did $160 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Hail in May 2012 did $250 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Hail in May 2012 did $150 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 796,292, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
38 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Oklahoma County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Oklahoma County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Oklahoma County, one scores higher. Of the group, Oklahoma County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Lincoln County gets the largest, at 30.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pottawatomie County, OK | 85 | 16.9% | 29.8% |
| Oklahoma County, OK | 78 | 16.2% | 16.5% |
| Lincoln County, OK | 71 | 17.2% | 30.5% |
| Logan County, OK | 49 | 9.3% | 19.8% |
| Cleveland County, OK | 45 | 12.0% | 19.9% |
| Canadian County, OK | 40 | 6.9% | 17.2% |
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 Oklahoma County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Oklahoma County's poverty rate was 16.2% in 2024, 44th 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, Oklahoma County ranks 28th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Oklahoma 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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Community Action Agency of Oklahoma City and Oklahoma/canadian Counties, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Neighborhood Housing Services Oklahoma City
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.