About one in three people with a credit file in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Pottawatomie County, 33.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 82% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pottawatomie County's score
In Pottawatomie County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 86.7. Bankruptcy filings ran at 300.8 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 91% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 83.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Pottawatomie 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.
Pottawatomie County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (18.5%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (17.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.2% · August 202582nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people300.8 · 202591st percentile
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- 83.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.6% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.9% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.0% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 74.8 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 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.7% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
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- 74.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.9% · 202475th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.8% · 202471st percentile
- People with a disability20.1% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,709 · 202465th percentile
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- 36.0 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 rent17.4% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.5% · fiscal year 202726th 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 Pottawatomie 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 Pottawatomie County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pottawatomie County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pottawatomie County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 29.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Pottawatomie County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.3% in 2011 to 17.0% in 2012.
The share of households in Pottawatomie County getting SNAP food aid rose to 18.6%, the highest on the chart
Low on the chart: 14.0% 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, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma.
How Pottawatomie County has changed
Pottawatomie County's population nearly doubled to 74,446, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 62,354. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Pottawatomie County had its largest rise, from 15,852 in 1990 to 17,935 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Pottawatomie County rose 44% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 22,922 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.2% | 2024 16.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,526 | 2024 $61,709 |
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 Pottawatomie County's history
1891
Non-Indian settlement began September 22, 1891, organized as County B with Tecumseh as seat. Wikipedia
1891
Land allotment process began September 22, 1891, when tribes agreed to divide communal reservation land and allot to individual members. Wikipedia
1891
Land Run of 1891 opened surplus tribal lands in Sac and Fox, Pottawatomie and Shawnee territory for settlement. Wikipedia
1934
Pottawatomie County Court House built in 1934 by Public Works Administration at cost of $250,000. Wikipedia
1957
A tornado in September 1957 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1970
A tornado in October 1970 did $25 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in May 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A tornado in May 2013 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 72,454, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1970
38 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pottawatomie County, 16 of them for flooding. FEMA
Pottawatomie County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Pottawatomie County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pottawatomie County ranks 4th of the eight; Okfuskee County is highest, at 42.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seminole County, OK | 97 | 19.7% | 37.5% |
| Okfuskee County, OK | 93 | 24.3% | 42.5% |
| Pottawatomie County, OK | 85 | 16.9% | 29.8% |
| Oklahoma County, OK | 78 | 16.2% | 16.5% |
| Lincoln County, OK | 71 | 17.2% | 30.5% |
| Pontotoc County, OK | 49 | 13.2% | 26.9% |
| Cleveland County, OK | 45 | 12.0% | 19.9% |
| 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 Pottawatomie County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Pottawatomie County's poverty rate was 16.9% in 2024, 38th 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, Pottawatomie County ranks 16th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pottawatomie 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 Pottawatomie 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 Pottawatomie County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.