In Garfield County, Utah, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Garfield County, 16.8% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Garfield County's score
In Garfield County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 82.4. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 8.8. About one in 15 renters (6.6%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Garfield 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, Garfield County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (8.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people without health insurance (12.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.4 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year8.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.2% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
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- 38.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.9% · 202432nd percentile
- People with a disability12.9% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,381 · 202434th percentile
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- 26.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.4% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people94.1 · 202532nd percentile
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- 24.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.6% · August 202552nd 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 score22.2% · second quarter of 20265th or lower percentile
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- 8.9 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 rent6.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.8% · fiscal year 202712th 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 Garfield 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 Garfield County, 22.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Garfield County
Utah
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Garfield County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Garfield County, Utah, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Garfield County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 9.8% in 2010 to 12.6% in 2011; 12.6% in 2011 to 9.8% in 2012.
The share of households in Garfield County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2011 and has since fallen to 5.6%
Low on the chart: 3.3% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Garfield County, Utah.
How Garfield County has changed
Garfield County's population had its largest rise, from 4,552 in 2004 to 5,068 in 2009.
Garfield County's population nearly doubled to 5,290, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 5,290 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Garfield County, Utah.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Garfield County doubled to 2,596, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 2,596. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Garfield County, Utah.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 8.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.0% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,048 | 2024 $72,381 |
The table uses 8.0% for 2025; the score uses 8.6% 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 Garfield County's history
1882
Created March 9, 1882 from Iron County. Wikipedia
1904
Panguitch Indian School 1904-1909 took Paiute and Kaibab Paiute children, some at gunpoint from Arizona. Wikipedia
1920
Timber and livestock production ceased after economic shifts following World War I. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 5,253. The 2020 Census counted 5,083, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2008
A flash flood in September 2008 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
Lightning in August 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
Lightning in July 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flash flood in August 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
6 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Garfield County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Garfield County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Garfield County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Garfield County ranks 3rd of the seven; Beaver County is highest, at 32.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Juan County, UT | 62 | 19.5% | 29.6% |
| Piute County, UT | 45 | 13.7% | 23.1% |
| Iron County, UT | 28 | 12.6% | 23.4% |
| Garfield County, UT | 25 | 9.8% | 25.0% |
| Kane County, UT | 17 | 8.8% | 24.7% |
| Wayne County, UT | 9 | 10.3% | 23.9% |
| Beaver County, UT | 5 | 9.5% | 32.2% |
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 Garfield County the poorest county in Utah?
No, Garfield County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 12th 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, Garfield County ranks 12th of 29 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Garfield 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 Garfield 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 Garfield County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.