In Park County, Wyoming, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Park County, 16.6% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 89% of U.S. counties.
What drives Park County's score
In Park County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 31.5. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 11.8. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.0%, August 2025, lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Park 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.
Park County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 31.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202635th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.1% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
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- 31.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.9% · 202421st percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.5% · 202415th percentile
- People with a disability12.0% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- People without health insurance10.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,582 · 202432nd percentile
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- 27.6 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 income16.6% · fiscal year 202710th percentile
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- 22.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.9% · August 202518th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people81.3 · 202526th percentile
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- 11.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.6% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.0% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.5% · second quarter of 20269th 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 Park 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 Park County, 25.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Park County
Wyoming
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Park County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 18.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Park County, Wyoming, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Park County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2020 low, from 3.6% in 2020 to 4.9% in 2021.
The share of households in Park County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 3.6% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Park County, Wyoming.
How Park County has changed
Park County's population nearly doubled to 31,082, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 24,369. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Park County, Wyoming.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Park County rose 44% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 11,507. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Park County, Wyoming.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.5% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.1% | 2024 9.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,468 | 2024 $73,582 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Park County's history
1870
Irish and German immigrants settled in Park County area in 1870s. Wikipedia
1909
February 15, 1909 (established) 1911 (organized). Wikipedia
1980
Husky Oil Company refinery operated until 1980s, facility demolished 1990s. Wikipedia
2010
Lightning in June 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 29,624, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A flood in June 2022 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
Caleco Foundry burned down 2024, one of only two foundries in Wyoming. Wikipedia
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Since 1978
4 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Park County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Park County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Park County, in Wyoming and Montana, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Park County ranks 7th of the nine; Big Horn County is highest, at 27.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fremont County, WY | 43 | 12.5% | 26.6% |
| Big Horn County, WY | 35 | 12.6% | 27.0% |
| Hot Springs County, WY | 35 | 11.5% | 26.7% |
| Park County, MT | 11 | 9.2% | 19.2% |
| Park County, WY | 10 | 9.9% | 18.8% |
| Carbon County, MT | 9 | 9.4% | 19.9% |
| Washakie County, WY | 8 | 11.4% | 26.2% |
| Gallatin County, MT | 8 | 7.1% | 8.7% |
| Teton County, WY | 0 | 5.4% | 1.8% |
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 Park County the poorest county in Wyoming?
No, Park County's poverty rate was 9.9% in 2024, 13th 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, Park County ranks 14th of 23 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Park 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.
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 Park County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.