About one in 11 people in Crane County, Texas, has a disability
In Crane County, 9.0% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Crane County's score
In Crane County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 78.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 5.3. Almost no renters (0.0%, 2020 to 2024) pay half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Crane 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, Crane County is worse off than most counties on adults 25 to 54 not working (34.1%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (18.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.7% · August 202568th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score57.2% · second quarter of 202692nd percentile
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- 52.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202610th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working34.1% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 41.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.1% · August 202577th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people21.9 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 40.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.4% · 202434th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.7% · 202442nd percentile
- People with a disability9.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance18.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,653 · 202424th percentile
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- 5.3 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 rent0.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.7% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Crane 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 Crane County, 15.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Crane County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Crane County had its largest drop, from 18.8% in 2009 to 11.9% in 2014.
In Crane County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 16.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Crane County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Crane County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 7.3% in 2019 to 2.5% in 2020.
The share of households in Crane County getting SNAP food aid fell by more than half from 2009 to 2024, reaching 3.9%, with its low point on the chart in 2021
Low on the chart: 2.2% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Crane County, Texas.
How Crane County has changed
Crane County's population had its largest rise, from 4,479 in 1979 to 5,458 in 1984.
Crane County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 5,458 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Crane County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Crane County had its largest drop, from 1,433 in 2015 to 1,101 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Crane County fell by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 1,336, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 1,101 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Crane County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 2.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.6% | 2024 11.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,201 | 2024 $77,653 |
The table uses 2.6% for 2025; the score uses 2.9% 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 Crane County's history
1887
Created in 1887 and organized in 1927. Wikipedia
1926
Discovery of oil in 1926 in the Permian Basin. Wikipedia
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 4,699. The 2020 Census counted 4,675, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1998
12 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Crane County. FEMA
Crane County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Crane County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Crane County ranks 3rd of the six; Pecos County is highest, at 24.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ector County, TX | 78 | 14.8% | 15.2% |
| Ward County, TX | 70 | 13.6% | 15.7% |
| Pecos County, TX | 65 | 17.3% | 24.4% |
| Crane County, TX | 39 | 11.4% | 16.9% |
| Upton County, TX | 34 | 13.4% | 15.1% |
| Crockett County, TX | 33 | 14.7% | 23.8% |
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 Crane County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Crane County's poverty rate was 11.4% in 2024, 197th highest of 254 in Texas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Starr County, at 35.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Crane County ranks 214th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Crane 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 of NorthWest Texas
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.
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 Crane County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.