Montana County Distress Index
Financial distress scores for all 56 counties in Montana, scored 0–100 across five domains. Mean score: 35.9. 6counties are in the two most distressed fifths.
Data: Census, BLS, Urban Institute, HUD, US Courts | Scores as of 2026-03-26
Montana Snapshot
56 Counties Scored
35.9 Mean Score
31.9 Median Score
72.8 Glacier County Most Distressed
12.8 Jefferson County Least Distressed
1 Most distressed fifth5 Second-most distressed fifth4 Middle fifth17 Second-least distressed fifth29 Least distressed fifth
Quintile Distribution Montana County Map
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Least distressed fifth Second-least distressed fifth Middle fifth Second-most distressed fifth Most distressed fifth
All 56 Montana counties colored by distress fifth. Hover for details; click released counties for full reports.
Most & Least Distressed
Most Distressed
Least Distressed
Score Distribution
How Montana's 56 county scores are distributed across the 0–100 scale.
All Montana Counties
56 counties ranked by distress score. Click column headers to sort.
| State Rank | Nat'l Rank | County | Score | Distress Fifth | Primary Driver |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 347 | Glacier County | 72.8 | Most distressed fifth | Labor |
| 2 | 634 | Big Horn County | 67.0 | Second-most distressed fifth | Labor |
| 3 | 815 | Roosevelt County | 63.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 4 | 964 | Musselshell County | 60.8 | Second-most distressed fifth | Labor |
| 5 | 983 | Rosebud County | 60.6 | Second-most distressed fifth | Labor |
| 6 | 1,191 | Sanders County | 57.3 | Second-most distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 7 | 1,283 | Lincoln County | 55.6 | Middle fifth | Labor |
| 8 | 1,516 | Mineral County | 51.5 | Middle fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 9 | 1,523 | Silver Bow County | 51.4 | Middle fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 10 | 1,793 | Deer Lodge County | 46.6 | Middle fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 11 | 1,921 | Blaine County | 44.5 | Second-least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 12 | 1,965 | Wheatland County | 43.6 | Second-least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 13 | 1,969 | Custer County | 43.6 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 14 | 2,001 | Granite County | 43.1 | Second-least distressed fifth | Labor |
| 15 | 2,029 | Lake County | 42.6 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 16 | 2,081 | Hill County | 41.7 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 17 | 2,184 | Madison County | 39.8 | Second-least distressed fifth | Labor |
| 18 | 2,251 | Golden Valley County | 38.4 | Second-least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 19 | 2,253 | Cascade County | 38.3 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 20 | 2,276 | Petroleum County | 37.9 | Second-least distressed fifth | Labor |
| 21 | 2,287 | Pondera County | 37.7 | Second-least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 22 | 2,319 | Yellowstone County | 37.1 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 23 | 2,328 | Powell County | 36.8 | Second-least distressed fifth | Labor |
| 24 | 2,414 | Prairie County | 35.0 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 25 | 2,442 | Flathead County | 34.4 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 26 | 2,454 | Sheridan County | 34.1 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 27 | 2,484 | Missoula County | 33.3 | Second-least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 28 | 2,554 | Dawson County | 31.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 29 | 2,559 | Chouteau County | 31.8 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 30 | 2,564 | Ravalli County | 31.6 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 31 | 2,583 | Toole County | 31.3 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 32 | 2,597 | Broadwater County | 31.0 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 33 | 2,609 | Wibaux County | 30.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 34 | 2,630 | Garfield County | 30.3 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 35 | 2,659 | Park County | 29.7 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 36 | 2,661 | Meagher County | 29.7 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 37 | 2,668 | McCone County | 29.4 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 38 | 2,670 | Judith Basin County | 29.3 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 39 | 2,683 | Lewis and Clark County | 28.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 40 | 2,691 | Valley County | 28.7 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 41 | 2,718 | Richland County | 28.0 | Least distressed fifth | Default & Legal |
| 42 | 2,723 | Beaverhead County | 27.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 43 | 2,724 | Fergus County | 27.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 44 | 2,736 | Carter County | 27.5 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 45 | 2,759 | Phillips County | 26.9 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 46 | 2,781 | Treasure County | 26.3 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 47 | 2,791 | Gallatin County | 26.0 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 48 | 2,861 | Fallon County | 23.9 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 49 | 2,871 | Carbon County | 23.7 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 50 | 2,972 | Liberty County | 20.4 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 51 | 2,975 | Powder River County | 20.3 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 52 | 2,998 | Daniels County | 19.5 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 53 | 3,002 | Teton County | 19.4 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
| 54 | 3,019 | Sweet Grass County | 18.2 | Least distressed fifth | Safety Net & Buffer |
| 55 | 3,061 | Stillwater County | 15.6 | Least distressed fifth | Labor |
| 56 | 3,111 | Jefferson County | 12.8 | Least distressed fifth | Debt Burden (housing basis) |
How County Scores Work
Each county is scored 0–100 using five equal-weighted domains. Each domain averages its member indicators' county ranks, and the composite is the mean of those domain scores. Higher scores indicate greater household financial distress.
Most distressed fifth — 1 Montana county
Second-most distressed fifth — 5 Montana counties
Middle fifth — 4 Montana counties
Second-least distressed fifth — 17 Montana counties
Least distressed fifth — 29 Montana counties