Unemployment in Grant County, Washington, is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties
In Grant County, 6.3% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Grant County's score
In Grant County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 79.3. Income and the safety net comes next, at 61.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Grant 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.
Grant County does better than most counties on two measures: people with unpaid debt sent to a collector (18.4%, August 2025) and people with a disability (14.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202695th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.9% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
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- 61.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.8% · 202474th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.4% · 202473rd percentile
- People with a disability14.5% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- People without health insurance13.6% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,710 · 202436th percentile
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- 57.1 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 rent17.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.8% · fiscal year 202769th percentile
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- 48.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.8% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.8% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.8% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
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- 43.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.4% · August 202532nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people135.4 · 202554th 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 Grant 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 Grant County, 14.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Grant County
Washington
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Grant County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 21.9% in 2004 to 25.3% in 2009.
In Grant County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Grant County, Washington, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Grant County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 16.1% in 2009 to 17.7% in 2010.
The share of households in Grant County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 15.7% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Grant County, Washington.
How Grant County has changed
Grant County's population had its largest rise, from 63,831 in 1994 to 73,928 in 1999.
Grant County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 104,717, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 54,080. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Grant County, Washington.
The number of jobs located in Grant County had its largest rise, from 20,707 in 1990 to 26,029 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Grant County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 42,301, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 39,206. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Grant County, Washington.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.8% | 2025 6.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.3% | 2024 16.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,797 | 2024 $71,710 |
The table uses 6.2% for 2025; the score uses 6.3% 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 Grant County's history
1933
Grand Coulee Dam construction approved as Columbia Basin Project. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 99,123, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Grant County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Grant County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Grant County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Grant County ranks 4th of the nine; Okanogan County is highest, at 32.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yakima County, WA | 69 | 16.7% | 27.9% |
| Adams County, WA | 68 | 14.4% | 23.3% |
| Grant County, WA | 62 | 16.8% | 25.2% |
| Okanogan County, WA | 60 | 21.7% | 32.4% |
| Franklin County, WA | 46 | 14.0% | 20.9% |
| Kittitas County, WA | 44 | 12.9% | 21.0% |
| Lincoln County, WA | 39 | 13.2% | 31.4% |
| Benton County, WA | 39 | 10.6% | 20.3% |
| Douglas County, WA | 35 | 10.9% | 23.6% |
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 Grant County the poorest county in Washington?
No, Grant County's poverty rate was 16.8% in 2024, 3rd 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, Grant County ranks 4th of 39 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Grant 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.
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 Grant County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.