Unemployment in Tillamook County, Oregon, is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties
In Tillamook County, 5.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tillamook County's score
In Tillamook County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 76.7. Income and the safety net comes next, at 60.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tillamook 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.
Tillamook County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (2.9%, August 2025) and people without health insurance (4.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 76.7 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202685th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.8% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
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- 60.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.4% · 202467th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.3% · 202482nd percentile
- People with a disability20.8% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,296 · 202451st percentile
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- 46.5 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 rent11.8% · 2020 to 202418th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.5% · fiscal year 202774th percentile
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- 38.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.1% · August 202522nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people135 · 202553rd percentile
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- 32.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.9% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.9% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.2% · second quarter of 202626th 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 Tillamook 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 Tillamook County, 28.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tillamook County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Tillamook County had its largest rise, from 22.6% in 2004 to 29.0% in 2009.
In Tillamook County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 29.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Tillamook County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tillamook County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 18.7% in 2019 to 16.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Tillamook County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 16.1%
Low on the chart: 11.1% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Tillamook County, Oregon.
How Tillamook County has changed
Tillamook County's population rose by about half to 27,264, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 20,605. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tillamook County, Oregon.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Tillamook County nearly doubled to 9,916, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 7,308. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tillamook County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.4% | 2024 15.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,533 | 2024 $66,296 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Tillamook County's history
2006
A flood in November 2006 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flood in December 2007 did $26.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flood in December 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in November 2008 did $3.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 27,390, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1964
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tillamook County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tillamook County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Tillamook County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tillamook County ranks 2nd of the six; Lincoln County is highest, at 31.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln County, OR | 76 | 16.3% | 31.7% |
| Tillamook County, OR | 51 | 15.4% | 29.3% |
| Yamhill County, OR | 50 | 9.9% | 22.7% |
| Clatsop County, OR | 49 | 13.3% | 28.0% |
| Polk County, OR | 46 | 10.6% | 24.2% |
| Washington County, OR | 28 | 8.4% | 13.8% |
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 Tillamook County the poorest county in Oregon?
No, Tillamook County's poverty rate was 15.4% in 2024, 8th highest of 36 in Oregon (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Malheur County, at 18.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Tillamook County ranks 23rd of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tillamook 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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Oregon Law Center
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 Tillamook 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 Tillamook County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.