About one in four people in Garfield County, Washington, has a disability
In Garfield County, 24.2% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Garfield County's score
In Garfield County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 72.3. About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 (28.5%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 86% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 67.0.
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.
Garfield County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (4.3%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (84.6, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 72.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202658th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.5% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
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- 67.0 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 rent26.9% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd percentile
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- 49.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.9% · 202447th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.7% · 202447th percentile
- People with a disability24.2% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- People without health insurance4.3% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,604 · 202444th percentile
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- 34.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.9% · August 202541st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people84.6 · 202527th percentile
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- 29.8 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 202524th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.5% · second quarter of 202643rd 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, 26.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Garfield County
Washington
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Garfield County had its largest rise in the last span, from 27.0% in 2019 to 34.1% in 2024.
In Garfield County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 34.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Garfield County, Washington, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 34.1%; 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 had its largest rise, from 8.5% in 2020 to 14.4% in 2021.
The share of households in Garfield County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 13.6%
Low on the chart: 4.3% in 2012. 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, Washington.
How Garfield County has changed
Garfield County's population fell most sharply after its 1974 high, from 2,867 in 1974 to 2,603 in 1979.
Garfield County's population fell 13% from 1969 to 2024, with its low point on the chart in 2014
Low on the chart: 2,197 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Garfield County, Washington.
The number of jobs located in Garfield County had its largest rise, from 712 in 1995 to 847 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Garfield County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 847 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Garfield County, Washington.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.1% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.8% | 2024 12.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,628 | 2024 $68,604 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 4,199. The 2020 Census counted 2,286, 54% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1964
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Garfield County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Garfield County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Garfield County, in Washington and Oregon, one scores higher. Of the group, Garfield County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (34.1%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia County, WA | 52 | 12.4% | 33.5% |
| Garfield County, WA | 50 | 12.9% | 34.1% |
| Asotin County, WA | 44 | 12.3% | 31.0% |
| Whitman County, WA | 38 | 23.0% | 19.7% |
| Wallowa County, OR | 34 | 11.7% | 29.0% |
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 Washington?
No, Garfield County's poverty rate was 12.9% in 2024, 13th highest of 39 in Washington (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Whitman County, at 23.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Garfield County ranks 11th of 39 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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Northwest Justice Project (NJP)
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.