Unemployment in Umatilla County, Oregon, is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties
In Umatilla County, 5.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Umatilla County's score
In Umatilla County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 64.3. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 50.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Umatilla 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.
Umatilla County does better than most counties on two measures: children below the poverty line (14.3%, 2024) and people with a car or retail loan behind (4.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 64.3 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 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.4% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
-
- 50.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.0% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people146.2 · 202558th percentile
-
- 49.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.1% · August 202560th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.4% · August 202537th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.3% · second quarter of 202650th percentile
-
- 47.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.4% · 202443rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.3% · 202435th percentile
- People with a disability18.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.7% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,908 · 202446th percentile
-
- 44.4 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 rent17.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd percentile
-
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 Umatilla 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 Umatilla County, 16.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Umatilla County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Umatilla County had its largest rise, from 18.9% in 2004 to 23.3% in 2009.
In Umatilla County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Umatilla County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Umatilla County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 23.2% in 2018 to 21.1% in 2019.
The share of households in Umatilla County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 20.5%
Low on the chart: 16.4% 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, Umatilla County, Oregon.
How Umatilla County has changed
Umatilla County's population doubled to 80,491, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 57,403. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Umatilla County, Oregon.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Umatilla County rose by about half to 32,978, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 28,857. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Umatilla County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.2% | 2025 5.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 12.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,207 | 2024 $67,908 |
The table uses 5.6% 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 Umatilla County's history
2019
A flood in April 2019 did $9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in April 2019 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 80,075, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
A flood in February 2020 did $39.7 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1964
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Umatilla County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Umatilla County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Umatilla County, in Oregon and Washington, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Umatilla County ranks 5th of the eight; Grant County is highest, at 34.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant County, OR | 53 | 13.4% | 34.1% |
| Columbia County, WA | 52 | 12.4% | 33.5% |
| Umatilla County, OR | 52 | 12.4% | 28.5% |
| Union County, OR | 50 | 14.3% | 32.5% |
| Walla Walla County, WA | 39 | 13.0% | 25.5% |
| Benton County, WA | 39 | 10.6% | 20.3% |
| Wallowa County, OR | 34 | 11.7% | 29.0% |
| Morrow County, OR | 33 | 11.5% | 23.6% |
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 Umatilla County the poorest county in Oregon?
No, Umatilla County's poverty rate was 12.4% in 2024, 24th 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, Umatilla County ranks 20th of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Umatilla 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.
-
Legal Aid Services of Oregon
Legal aid
-
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 Umatilla 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 Umatilla County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.