In Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in five dollars of the typical household's income
In Pontotoc County, 19.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 64% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pontotoc County's score
In Pontotoc County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 61.0. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 37.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pontotoc 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.
Even so, Pontotoc County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (16.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.0% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people127.6 · 202550th percentile
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- 59.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.2% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.1% · 202445th percentile
- People with a disability15.3% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- People without health insurance16.3% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,954 · 202468th percentile
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- 52.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202539th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.3% · second quarter of 202672nd percentile
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- 40.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202636th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.7% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
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- 37.4 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 rent16.4% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.3% · fiscal year 202735th 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 Pontotoc 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 Pontotoc County, 17.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pontotoc County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pontotoc County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 26.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.9%; 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 Pontotoc County getting SNAP food aid rose by about a quarter from 2009 to 2024, reaching 15.4%, with most of the change between 2019 and 2020
High on the chart: 16.1% in 2013. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma.
How Pontotoc County has changed
Pontotoc County's population rose 42% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 30,396. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Pontotoc County had its largest rise, from 12,894 in 1995 to 15,035 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Pontotoc County nearly doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 20,613, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 17,146. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pontotoc County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.3% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.4% | 2024 13.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,588 | 2024 $60,954 |
The table uses 3.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Pontotoc County's history
1830
Choctaw tribe received land via Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek in 1830. Wikipedia
1837
Chickasaw tribe granted land within the Choctaw domain in 1837. Wikipedia
1907
Created at statehood from part of the Chickasaw Nation in Indian Territory. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 39,792. The 2020 Census counted 38,065, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
1959
A tornado in May 1959 killed seven people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in March 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A thunderstorm in February 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A tornado in March 2025 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pontotoc County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pontotoc County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Pontotoc County, seven score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pontotoc County ranks 8th of the nine; Seminole County is highest, at 37.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seminole County, OK | 97 | 19.7% | 37.5% |
| Hughes County, OK | 88 | 22.4% | 31.7% |
| Pottawatomie County, OK | 85 | 16.9% | 29.8% |
| Johnston County, OK | 83 | 21.5% | 34.8% |
| Garvin County, OK | 81 | 19.4% | 32.9% |
| Coal County, OK | 65 | 18.6% | 33.6% |
| Murray County, OK | 63 | 13.7% | 29.6% |
| Pontotoc County, OK | 49 | 13.2% | 26.9% |
| McClain County, OK | 40 | 8.9% | 21.6% |
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 Pontotoc County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Pontotoc County's poverty rate was 13.2% in 2024, 62nd 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, Pontotoc County ranks 58th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pontotoc 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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Chickasaw Nation Division of Housing
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 Pontotoc 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 Pontotoc County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.