About one in five people in Osage County, Oklahoma, has a disability
In Osage County, 22.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Osage County's score
In Osage County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 79.0. People with a credit card behind: 7.6%, August 2025, higher than in 80% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 71.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Osage 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.
Osage County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.3%, 2020 to 2024) and median household income ($68,398, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.7% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.6% · second quarter of 202676th percentile
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- 71.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
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- 70.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.1% · August 202577th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people160.4 · 202563rd percentile
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- 65.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.3% · 202466th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.6% · 202458th percentile
- People with a disability22.0% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,398 · 202444th percentile
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- 49.0 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 rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202758th 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 Osage 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 Osage County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Osage County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Osage County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Osage County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Osage County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 9.2% in 2010 to 10.5% in 2011; 10.6% in 2016 to 11.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Osage County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 9.2% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Osage County, Oklahoma.
How Osage County has changed
Osage County's population had its largest rise, from 31,222 in 1974 to 38,060 in 1979.
Osage County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 46,495
High on the chart: 47,445 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Osage County, Oklahoma.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Osage County rose 40% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 8,027. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Osage County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 15.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,829 | 2024 $68,398 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Osage County's history
1897
Phoenix Oil Company drilled first successful oil well on Osage reservation in October 1897. Wikipedia
1907
Created in 1907 when Oklahoma was admitted as a state. Wikipedia
1920
Burbank Oil Field discovered May 1920, peak production July 1923. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in June 1974 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1991
A tornado in April 1991 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 47,472. The 2020 Census counted 45,818, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2024
A tornado in May 2024 did $10 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1971
38 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Osage County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Osage County beside its neighbors
Osage County scores higher than all seven counties that border it, in Oklahoma and Kansas. For the share of income from benefit checks, Osage County ranks 6th of the eight; Pawnee County is highest, at 37.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Osage County, OK | 78 | 15.3% | 25.6% |
| Pawnee County, OK | 78 | 17.5% | 37.2% |
| Kay County, OK | 73 | 16.8% | 31.8% |
| Tulsa County, OK | 65 | 13.3% | 14.9% |
| Chautauqua County, KS | 59 | 15.2% | 35.1% |
| Washington County, OK | 59 | 13.8% | 12.0% |
| Noble County, OK | 53 | 13.1% | 26.3% |
| Cowley County, KS | 50 | 13.2% | 29.7% |
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 Osage County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Osage County's poverty rate was 15.3% in 2024, 47th 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, Osage County ranks 27th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Osage 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.
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 Osage County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.