About one in 18 people in Summit County, Utah, has a disability
In Summit County, 5.7% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 97% of U.S. counties.
What drives Summit County's score
In Summit County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 40.4. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 1.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Summit 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.
Summit County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 40.4 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent17.0% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202737th percentile
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- 17.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.1% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
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- 15.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector6.0% · August 20250th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people88.9 · 202530th percentile
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- 9.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line5.0% · 20240th percentile
- Children below the poverty line4.7% · 20240th percentile
- People with a disability5.7% · 2020 to 20240th percentile
- People without health insurance7.3% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$132,012 · 20240th percentile
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- 1.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.2% · August 20251st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind1.6% · August 20253rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score17.0% · second quarter of 20260th 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 Summit 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 Summit County, 15.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Summit County
Utah
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Summit County moved most in three steps: 7.5% in 1974 to 6.2% in 1979; 4.8% in 1989 to 3.5% in 1994; 3.8% in 2004 to 5.1% in 2009.
In Summit County, pay from work still brings in more than ten times as much as benefit checks, and benefit checks' share of income is smaller than in 1969
In Summit County, Utah, benefit checks' share of income fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 3.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Summit County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 1.8% in 2011 to 2.8% in 2012; 2.2% in 2017 to 1.2% in 2018.
The share of households in Summit County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 1.4%
Low on the chart: 1.0% 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, Summit County, Utah.
How Summit County has changed
Summit County's population had its largest rise, from 14,630 in 1989 to 22,044 in 1994.
Summit County's population grew to about seven times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 43,109, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 6,878. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Summit County, Utah.
The number of jobs located in Summit County had its largest rise in the last span, from 25,578 in 2020 to 32,506 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Summit County grew to about four times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 32,506, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 25,578. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Summit County, Utah.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 2.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.4% | 2024 5.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $36,280 | 2024 $132,012 |
The table uses 2.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Summit County's history
1854
1854 (created) 1861 (organized). Wikipedia
1997
A thunderstorm in August 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Lightning in July 2003 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
Lightning in August 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in October 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 42,357, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Summit County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Summit County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Summit County, in Utah and Wyoming, six score higher. Of the group, Summit County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Uinta County gets the largest, at 24.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweetwater County, WY | 38 | 9.1% | 17.4% |
| Duchesne County, UT | 30 | 9.4% | 20.5% |
| Salt Lake County, UT | 29 | 7.9% | 12.5% |
| Uinta County, WY | 26 | 10.7% | 24.1% |
| Daggett County, UT | 24 | 8.1% | 24.1% |
| Rich County, UT | 17 | 8.5% | 16.7% |
| Summit County, UT | 2 | 5.0% | 3.4% |
| Wasatch County, UT | 2 | 4.8% | 8.5% |
| Morgan County, UT | 1 | 4.2% | 10.5% |
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 Summit County the poorest county in Utah?
No, Summit County's poverty rate was 5.0% in 2024, 27th 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, Summit County ranks 27th of 29 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Summit 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 Summit 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 Summit County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.