county

Fayette County, IL

Demographic and economic profile of Fayette County, IL, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Fayette County is a small rural Illinois county of 21,380 residents with an economy reflected in a GDP per capita of $27,891 and median household income of $60,944, though a 16.5% poverty rate and low educational attainment—only 16.6% hold a bachelor's degree or higher—point to a workforce that skews toward trade and manual occupations. The labor force participation rate is 53.4%, unemployment sits at 3.4%, and median worker earnings are $35,038, suggesting a modest but stable employment base. Housing costs are low, with a median home value of $114,700 and median gross rent of $740/month, set against a population that has contracted 1.6% over five years and an 80.6% homeownership rate.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

21,380

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$60,944

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

41.9 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-1.6% since 2018

Fayette County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone18,936 (88.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races991 (4.6%)
  • Black or African American Alone692 (3.2%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race515 (2.4%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone71 (0.3%)
  • Some Other Race Alone65 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish487
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic462
  3. 3.Other Indo-European44
  4. 4.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic40
  5. 5.Other Asian and Pacific Island36

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

20.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

60.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

19.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

0.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,141

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$27,891

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$30,865

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

16.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,852
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)1,310
  3. 3.Manufacturing (Group)931
  4. 4.Construction (Group)770
  5. 5.Public Administration (Group)703

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,636
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations1,884
  3. 3.Service Occupations1,743
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,684
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,219

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 4.38×)629
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 1.68×)714
  3. 3.Retail Trade (LQ 1.13×)1,106
  4. 4.Other Services (LQ 1.11×)472
  5. 5.Manufacturing (LQ 1.09×)976

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$114,700

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$740/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

80.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $125,000 to $149,999623 (9.9%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999598 (9.5%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999569 (9.0%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999508 (8.1%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999495 (7.9%)
  • $80,000 to $89,999399 (6.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

16.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

87.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

53.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,038

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

25.5 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone7,176 (79.3%)
  • Carpooled943 (10.4%)
  • Worked At Home645 (7.1%)
  • Walked143 (1.6%)
  • Other112 (1.2%)
  • Public Transit23 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.