In Big Horn County, Wyoming, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Big Horn County, 18.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 78% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives Big Horn County's score
In Big Horn County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 52.4. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 27.7. Bankruptcy filings ran at 74.9 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 77% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Big Horn 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, Big Horn County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (13.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 52.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.9% · August 202558th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.5% · second quarter of 202627th percentile
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- 51.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.6% · 202445th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.2% · 202428th percentile
- People with a disability16.0% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- People without health insurance13.2% · 2020 to 202483rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,663 · 202450th percentile
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- 44.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202652nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 31.0 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 rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.0% · fiscal year 202721st percentile
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- 27.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.6% · August 202533rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people74.9 · 202522nd 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 Big Horn 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 Big Horn County, 21.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Big Horn County
Wyoming
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Big Horn County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Big Horn County, Wyoming, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Big Horn County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2011 low, from 4.4% in 2011 to 5.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Big Horn County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 4.4% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Big Horn County, Wyoming.
How Big Horn County has changed
Big Horn County's population fell most sharply after its 1984 high, from 12,287 in 1984 to 10,838 in 1989.
Big Horn County's population rose by about a fifth from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12,084
High on the chart: 12,287 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Big Horn County, Wyoming.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Big Horn County rose by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 4,295, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 4,456 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Big Horn County, Wyoming.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.8% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.4% | 2024 12.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,053 | 2024 $66,663 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Big Horn County's history
1890
March 12, 1890 (authorized) 1897 (organized). Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 13,176. The 2020 Census counted 11,521, 87% of the peak. Census Bureau
1959
A tornado in June 1959 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1978
4 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Big Horn County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Big Horn County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Big Horn County, in Wyoming and Montana, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Big Horn County ranks 2nd of the seven; Big Horn County is highest, at 37.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Horn County, MT | 78 | 22.2% | 37.1% |
| Big Horn County, WY | 35 | 12.6% | 27.0% |
| Park County, WY | 10 | 9.9% | 18.8% |
| Carbon County, MT | 9 | 9.4% | 19.9% |
| Sheridan County, WY | 8 | 9.0% | 17.0% |
| Washakie County, WY | 8 | 11.4% | 26.2% |
| Johnson County, WY | 3 | 8.0% | 19.8% |
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 Big Horn County the poorest county in Wyoming?
No, Big Horn County's poverty rate was 12.6% in 2024, 4th highest of 23 in Wyoming (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Albany County, at 15.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Big Horn County ranks 3rd of 23 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Big Horn 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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Legal Aid of Wyoming, Inc.
Legal aid
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Equal Justice Wyoming
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 Big Horn 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 Big Horn County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.