About one in five people in Okanogan County, Washington, lives below the poverty line
In Okanogan County, 21.7% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Okanogan County's score
In Okanogan County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 76.6. Jobs come next, at 73.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Okanogan 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.
Okanogan County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (52.6, 2025) and people with unpaid debt sent to a collector (17.5%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 76.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.7% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.4% · 202473rd percentile
- People with a disability16.7% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- People without health insurance14.9% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,401 · 202472nd percentile
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- 73.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202686th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.5% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
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- 61.9 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 rent17.1% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.3% · fiscal year 202779th percentile
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- 51.2 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 behind5.9% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.1% · second quarter of 202637th percentile
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- 19.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.5% · August 202528th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people52.6 · 202510th 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 Okanogan 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 Okanogan County, 23.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Okanogan County
Washington
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Okanogan County had its largest rise, from 24.4% in 2004 to 29.9% in 2009.
In Okanogan County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 32.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Okanogan County, Washington, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Okanogan County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (14.5% in 2009) to 16.7% in 2010.
The share of households in Okanogan County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 19.3%
Low on the chart: 14.5% 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, Okanogan County, Washington.
How Okanogan County has changed
Okanogan County's population doubled to 44,942, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 36,531. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Okanogan County, Washington.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Okanogan County rose 18% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 18,404 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Okanogan County, Washington.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.6% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.2% | 2024 21.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,580 | 2024 $59,401 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.3% 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 Okanogan County's history
1933
Grand Coulee Dam constructed 1933-1942. Wikipedia
1995
Hail in July 1995 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A wildfire in July 2001 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A flash flood in July 2001 did $1.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in May 2018 did $12 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 42,104, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Okanogan County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Okanogan County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Okanogan County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Okanogan County ranks 2nd of the eight; Ferry County is highest, at 40.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant County, WA | 62 | 16.8% | 25.2% |
| Okanogan County, WA | 60 | 21.7% | 32.4% |
| Ferry County, WA | 43 | 16.3% | 40.1% |
| Lincoln County, WA | 39 | 13.2% | 31.4% |
| Douglas County, WA | 35 | 10.9% | 23.6% |
| Whatcom County, WA | 34 | 11.4% | 19.9% |
| Skagit County, WA | 34 | 9.8% | 22.1% |
| Chelan County, WA | 20 | 10.2% | 21.7% |
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 Okanogan County the poorest county in Washington?
No, Okanogan County's poverty rate was 21.7% in 2024, 2nd 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, Okanogan County ranks 5th of 39 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Okanogan 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 Okanogan 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 Okanogan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.