In Weber County, Utah, benefit checks make up only 17 cents of every dollar of income
In Weber County, 16.5% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 67% of U.S. counties.
What drives Weber County's score
In Weber County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 59.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 23.6. The typical household earns $88,111 a year (2024), more than in 87% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Weber 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, Weber County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (329.1, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 59.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.6% · August 202524th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people329.1 · 202593rd percentile
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- 55.2 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 rent18.2% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.7% · fiscal year 202760th percentile
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- 33.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
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- 27.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.0% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.5% · second quarter of 202624th percentile
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- 23.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.9% · 202414th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.0% · 202417th percentile
- People with a disability12.1% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$88,111 · 202412th 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 Weber 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 Weber County, 12.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Weber County
Utah
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Weber County had its largest rise, from 12.9% in 2004 to 16.1% in 2009.
In Weber County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Weber County, Utah, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Weber County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 6.9% in 2009 to 8.3% in 2010; 8.7% in 2019 to 7.3% in 2020.
The share of households in Weber County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2019 to 2020, reaching 7.3%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Weber County, Utah.
How Weber County has changed
Weber County's population had its largest rise, from 207,794 in 2004 to 228,118 in 2009.
Weber County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 276,118, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 157,847. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Weber County, Utah.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Weber County doubled to 123,268, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 123,268. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Weber County, Utah.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.0% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.1% | 2024 8.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $29,884 | 2024 $88,111 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Weber County's history
1850
January 31, 1850 (created) March 3, 1852 (organized). Wikipedia
1997
Defense Depot Ogden closed, 1997. Wikipedia
2016
A tornado in September 2016 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 262,223, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A flood in May 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Weber County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Weber County beside its neighbors
Weber County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Weber County ranks 3rd of the six; Box Elder County is highest, at 17.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weber County, UT | 32 | 8.9% | 16.5% |
| Rich County, UT | 17 | 8.5% | 16.7% |
| Box Elder County, UT | 15 | 6.8% | 17.3% |
| Cache County, UT | 14 | 9.7% | 14.9% |
| Davis County, UT | 11 | 6.4% | 12.2% |
| 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 Weber County the poorest county in Utah?
No, Weber County's poverty rate was 8.9% in 2024, 18th 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, Weber County ranks 8th of 29 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Weber 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.
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 Weber County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.