In Carbon County, Wyoming, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Carbon County, 16.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carbon County's score
In Carbon County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 40.4. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 12.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carbon 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, Carbon County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 40.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.7% · August 202535th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.0% · August 202532nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score40.8% · second quarter of 202652nd percentile
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- 39.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.8% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability15.2% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,927 · 202427th percentile
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- 37.9 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 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 28.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.5% · August 202544th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people55.8 · 202511th percentile
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- 12.5 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 rent11.6% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.2% · fiscal year 20277th 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 Carbon 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 Carbon County, 19.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carbon County
Wyoming
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Carbon County had its largest rise, from 6.1% in 1979 to 9.5% in 1984.
In Carbon County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 16.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Carbon County, Wyoming, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Carbon County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 4.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Carbon County, Wyoming.
How Carbon County has changed
Carbon County's population had its largest rise, from 16,175 in 1974 to 20,351 in 1979.
Carbon County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 20,392 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carbon County, Wyoming.
The number of jobs located in Carbon County had its largest rise, from 6,734 in 2010 to 7,405 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Carbon County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 7,405 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carbon County, Wyoming.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.0% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.6% | 2024 10.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,503 | 2024 $75,927 |
The table uses 3.9% 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 Carbon County's history
1868
Organized December 16, 1868 from Laramie County in Dakota Territory. Wikipedia
1868
Union Pacific Railroad opened first coal mine in Carbon County, 1868. Wikipedia
1869
Became county in Wyoming Territory when territorial government formally organized May 19, 1869. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 21,896. The 2020 Census counted 14,537, 66% of the peak. Census Bureau
1998
Lightning in August 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Lightning in September 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flash flood in July 2011 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 2011
3 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carbon County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Carbon County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Carbon County, in Wyoming and Colorado, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Carbon County ranks 7th of the nine; Fremont County is highest, at 26.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fremont County, WY | 43 | 12.5% | 26.6% |
| Sweetwater County, WY | 38 | 9.1% | 17.4% |
| Moffat County, CO | 36 | 10.1% | 25.0% |
| Natrona County, WY | 31 | 10.7% | 15.8% |
| Jackson County, CO | 25 | 13.0% | 18.2% |
| Albany County, WY | 19 | 15.9% | 16.7% |
| Carbon County, WY | 18 | 10.8% | 16.6% |
| Routt County, CO | 10 | 6.6% | 7.6% |
| Converse County, WY | 9 | 9.8% | 17.8% |
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 Carbon County the poorest county in Wyoming?
No, Carbon County's poverty rate was 10.8% in 2024, 8th 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, Carbon County ranks 12th of 23 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carbon 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 Carbon 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 Carbon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.