About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in San Juan County, Utah, is not working
In San Juan County, 32.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives San Juan County's score
In San Juan County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 82.6. Income and the safety net comes next, at 81.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in San Juan 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.
San Juan County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (4.6%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (48.8, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.6 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202671st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working32.4% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
-
- 81.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.5% · 202485th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.7% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability20.8% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- People without health insurance17.5% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,019 · 202461st percentile
-
- 60.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.9% · second quarter of 202666th percentile
-
- 41.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.2% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people48.8 · 20258th percentile
-
- 22.7 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 rent4.6% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202740th 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 San Juan 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 San Juan County, 16.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
San Juan County
Utah
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In San Juan County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 29.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In San Juan County, Utah, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.6%; 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 San Juan County getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 15.1%, with most of the change between 2009 and 2010
High on the chart: 18.1% in 2013. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, San Juan County, Utah.
How San Juan County has changed
San Juan County's population had its largest rise, from 12,203 in 1989 to 13,877 in 1994.
San Juan County's population rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14,601
High on the chart: 14,752 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, San Juan County, Utah.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in San Juan County rose by about half to 4,780, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 4,187. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, San Juan County, Utah.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.8% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 36.4% | 2024 19.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,923 | 2024 $63,019 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in San Juan County's history
1880
Created February 17, 1880 from Iron, Kane, and Piute counties. Wikipedia
1943
Uranium and vanadium processing began 1943 for Manhattan Engineer District. Wikipedia
1960
Uranium mill closed permanently 1960 by Atomic Energy Commission. Wikipedia
1989
Radioactive material contamination from uranium mill, cleanup 1989-2004. Wikipedia
1996
A flash flood in September 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in September 2003 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 14,746. The 2020 Census counted 14,518, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 1977
4 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered San Juan County. FEMA
San Juan County beside its neighbors
Of the 12 counties that border San Juan County, in Utah, Arizona and Colorado, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, San Juan County ranks 5th of the 13; Apache County is highest, at 51.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apache County, AZ | 90 | 29.3% | 51.0% |
| Navajo County, AZ | 89 | 22.7% | 45.8% |
| Coconino County, AZ | 66 | 15.2% | 20.8% |
| San Juan County, UT | 62 | 19.5% | 29.6% |
| Montezuma County, CO | 60 | 14.8% | 29.9% |
| Grand County, UT | 47 | 10.3% | 17.5% |
| Dolores County, CO | 40 | 15.2% | 31.4% |
| Montrose County, CO | 40 | 12.9% | 27.2% |
| Mesa County, CO | 37 | 10.3% | 25.2% |
| Garfield County, UT | 25 | 9.8% | 25.0% |
| Kane County, UT | 17 | 8.8% | 24.7% |
| San Miguel County, CO | 10 | 8.0% | 5.3% |
| Wayne County, UT | 9 | 10.3% | 23.9% |
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 San Juan County the poorest county in Utah?
Yes, San Juan County's poverty rate was 19.5% in 2024, the highest of 29 counties in Utah (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, San Juan County ranks 1st of 29 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in San Juan 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.
-
Utah Legal Services
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 San Juan 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 San Juan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.