Benefit checks make up 39 cents of every dollar of income in Okmulgee County, Oklahoma
In Okmulgee County, 39.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Okmulgee County's score
In Okmulgee County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 87.9. About three in five people (56.7%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 92% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 84.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Okmulgee 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.
Okmulgee County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit 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 behind8.2% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.7% · second quarter of 202692nd percentile
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- 84.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202684th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.1% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
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- 84.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.6% · 202486th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.9% · 202479th percentile
- People with a disability20.8% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- People without health insurance13.0% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$52,198 · 202488th percentile
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- 83.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.7% · August 202585th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people229.5 · 202581st percentile
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- 59.7 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 rent20.5% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202755th 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 Okmulgee 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 Okmulgee County, 18.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Okmulgee County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Okmulgee County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 39.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Okmulgee County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 39.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Okmulgee County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 18.9% in 2010 to 20.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Okmulgee County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 21.4%
High on the chart: 21.5% in 2018. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma.
How Okmulgee County has changed
Okmulgee County's population had its largest drop, from 39,732 in 1984 to 36,814 in 1989.
Okmulgee County's population rose 3% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 39,817 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Okmulgee County rose by about a third to 10,443, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 10,443. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Okmulgee County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.8% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 24.8% | 2024 19.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,900 | 2024 $52,198 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.3% 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 Okmulgee County's history
1827
Creek Nation removed to Indian Territory along Trail of Tears from 1827 to 1836. Wikipedia
1907
Formed July 16, 1907 from Muskogee land. Wikipedia
1907
Oil discovered at nearby Morris in 1907 stimulating expansion. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 56,558. The 2020 Census counted 36,706, 65% of the peak. Census Bureau
1930
Decreasing oil production and lower prices caused population to shrink by 1930. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in April 1953 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1960
A tornado in May 1960 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage and killed eight people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2026
A tornado in March 2026 did $3 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
39 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Okmulgee County, 19 of them for flooding. FEMA
Okmulgee County beside its neighbors
Okmulgee County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Okmulgee County ranks 3rd of the seven; McIntosh County is highest, at 45.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Okmulgee County, OK | 95 | 19.6% | 39.1% |
| Muskogee County, OK | 94 | 19.6% | 36.8% |
| McIntosh County, OK | 93 | 18.9% | 45.9% |
| Okfuskee County, OK | 93 | 24.3% | 42.5% |
| Creek County, OK | 77 | 15.3% | 28.2% |
| Tulsa County, OK | 65 | 13.3% | 14.9% |
| Wagoner County, OK | 38 | 8.6% | 22.7% |
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 Okmulgee County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Okmulgee County's poverty rate was 19.6% in 2024, 16th 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, Okmulgee County ranks 3rd of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Okmulgee 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 Okmulgee 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 Okmulgee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.