In Sweetwater County, Wyoming, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Sweetwater County, 15.6% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sweetwater County's score
In Sweetwater County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 69.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 25.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sweetwater 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, Sweetwater County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 69.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.1% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people181.8 · 202570th percentile
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- 43.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.0% · second quarter of 202637th percentile
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- 41.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.5% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
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- 35.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.1% · 202415th percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.9% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability15.6% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- People without health insurance12.8% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,906 · 202425th percentile
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- 25.2 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 rent17.3% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Sweetwater 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 Sweetwater County, 14.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sweetwater County
Wyoming
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Sweetwater County had its largest rise in the last span, from 13.2% in 2019 to 17.4% in 2024.
In Sweetwater County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 17.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Sweetwater County, Wyoming, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sweetwater County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 2.6% in 2010 to 3.7% in 2011.
The share of households in Sweetwater County getting SNAP food aid tripled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 7.4%
High on the chart: 7.5% 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, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.
How Sweetwater County has changed
Sweetwater County's population had its largest rise, from 27,035 in 1974 to 39,589 in 1979.
Sweetwater County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 44,806 in 2014. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.
The number of jobs located in Sweetwater County had its largest drop, from 23,590 in 2015 to 20,121 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Sweetwater County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 23,668 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sweetwater County, Wyoming.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.1% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.1% | 2024 9.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $36,394 | 2024 $76,906 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Sweetwater County's history
1867
Created December 17, 1867, from Laramie County, originally named Carter County. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 43,806. The 2020 Census counted 42,272, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
4 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sweetwater County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sweetwater County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Sweetwater County, in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Sweetwater County ranks 5th 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% |
| Uinta County, WY | 26 | 10.7% | 24.1% |
| Daggett County, UT | 24 | 8.1% | 24.1% |
| Carbon County, WY | 18 | 10.8% | 16.6% |
| Sublette County, WY | 5 | 7.1% | 16.2% |
| Summit County, UT | 2 | 5.0% | 3.4% |
| Lincoln County, WY | 1 | 6.9% | 15.8% |
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 Sweetwater County the poorest county in Wyoming?
No, Sweetwater County's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 15th 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, Sweetwater County ranks 2nd of 23 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sweetwater 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 Sweetwater 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 Sweetwater County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.