About one in four people in Tillman County, Oklahoma, has a disability
In Tillman County, 24.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tillman County's score
In Tillman County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 89.0. Housing costs come next, at 82.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tillman 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.
Tillman 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.
- 89.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.2% · 202492nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line31.5% · 202493rd percentile
- People with a disability24.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance10.4% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,148 · 2024top 5%
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- 82.7 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 rent27.0% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.3% · fiscal year 202773rd percentile
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- 79.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202666th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.4% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
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- 77.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit 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 behind5.6% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score62.0% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 65.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.8% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people131 · 202552nd 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 Tillman 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 Tillman County, 20.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tillman County
Oklahoma
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Tillman County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 37.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Tillman County, Oklahoma, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tillman County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2011 low, from 15.1% in 2011 to 17.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Tillman County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 19.4%
Low on the chart: 15.1% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Tillman County, Oklahoma.
How Tillman County has changed
Tillman County's population had its largest drop, from 11,749 in 1984 to 10,705 in 1989.
Tillman County's population fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 6,736, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 12,232. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tillman County, Oklahoma.
The number of jobs located in Tillman County had its largest drop, from 1,957 in 2015 to 1,637 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Tillman County fell 41% from 1990 to 2025, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 2010 to 2015, reaching 1,957. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tillman County, Oklahoma.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.5% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 27.7% | 2024 22.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,303 | 2024 $47,148 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Tillman County's history
1904
Frederick fires destroyed business district in 1904 and 1905. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 24,390. The 2020 Census counted 6,968, 29% of the peak. Census Bureau
1941
Frederick Army Air Field opened 1941 to train pilots on Cessna UC-78 Bobcats and B-25 Mitchells. Wikipedia
1973
A tornado in June 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1979
A tornado in April 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in May 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
36 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tillman County, 20 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tillman County beside its neighbors
Tillman County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Oklahoma and Texas. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tillman County ranks 2nd of the seven; Kiowa County is highest, at 38.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tillman County, OK | 93 | 22.2% | 37.8% |
| Comanche County, OK | 83 | 16.9% | 27.8% |
| Cotton County, OK | 76 | 17.1% | 29.4% |
| Wilbarger County, TX | 76 | 14.9% | 25.3% |
| Kiowa County, OK | 73 | 22.2% | 38.4% |
| Wichita County, TX | 73 | 14.4% | 26.9% |
| Jackson County, OK | 54 | 16.4% | 24.7% |
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 Tillman County the poorest county in Oklahoma?
No, Tillman County's poverty rate was 22.2% in 2024, 7th 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, Tillman County ranks 5th of 77 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tillman 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 Tillman 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 Tillman County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.