About one in 12 people in Daggett County, Utah, lives below the poverty line
In Daggett County, 8.1% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 75% of U.S. counties.
What drives Daggett County's score
In Daggett County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 71.7. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 16.5. About three in ten people (31.1%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 83% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Daggett 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, Daggett County is worse off than most counties on adults 25 to 54 not working (34.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.7 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202648th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working34.9% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 37.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.1% · 20248th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability16.0% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- People without health insurance10.4% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,208 · 202440th percentile
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- 26.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collectornot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202515th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people100.8 · 202536th percentile
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- 22.4 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 rent2.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202739th percentile
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- 16.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202518th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202514th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.1% · second quarter of 202616th 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 Daggett 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 Daggett County, 21.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Daggett County
Utah
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Daggett County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 24.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Daggett County, Utah, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 24.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Daggett County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 0.0% in 2018. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Daggett County, Utah.
How Daggett County has changed
Daggett County's population had its largest drop, from 1,093 in 2014 to 894 in 2019.
Daggett County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 1,093 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Daggett County, Utah.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Daggett County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 454 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Daggett County, Utah.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.7% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.5% | 2024 8.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,274 | 2024 $70,208 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Daggett County's history
1918
Created January 7, 1918 from the north portion of Uintah County. Wikipedia
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 1,164. The 2020 Census counted 935, 80% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
Lightning in July 2016 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
6 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Daggett County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Daggett County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Daggett County, in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Daggett County ranks 2nd of the six; Moffat County is highest, at 25.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweetwater County, WY | 38 | 9.1% | 17.4% |
| Uintah County, UT | 36 | 12.5% | 19.5% |
| Moffat County, CO | 36 | 10.1% | 25.0% |
| Duchesne County, UT | 30 | 9.4% | 20.5% |
| Daggett County, UT | 24 | 8.1% | 24.1% |
| Summit County, UT | 2 | 5.0% | 3.4% |
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 Daggett County the poorest county in Utah?
No, Daggett County's poverty rate was 8.1% in 2024, 21st highest of 29 in Utah (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is San Juan County, at 19.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Daggett County ranks 13th of 29 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Daggett 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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Utah Legal Services
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 Daggett 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 Daggett County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.