county

Putnam County, IL

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

AI Overview

Putnam County is a small, rural Illinois county with a population of 5,600 that has contracted 2.5% over five years, reflecting the broader demographic pressures common to the region's agricultural economy. The labor force is modest—participation stands at 61.1% with unemployment at 3.4%—and educational attainment is limited, with 24.6% holding a bachelor's degree or higher, though median worker earnings of $42,861 and a median household income of $75,590 suggest solid blue-collar wages relative to cost of living. Housing costs are low, with a median home value of $167,800 and median gross rent of $804/month, and an 81.5% homeownership rate points to a stable, long-rooted resident base.

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

Population

5,600

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$75,590

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

47.4 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-2.5% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone5,113 (91.3%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race233 (4.2%)
  • Some Other Race Alone128 (2.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races52 (0.9%)
  • Asian Alone42 (0.7%)
  • Black or African American Alone19 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish140
  2. 2.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic19
  3. 3.Other Indo-European15
  4. 4.German or other West Germanic8
  5. 5.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)7

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

19.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

56.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

23.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.8%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

324

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$54,448

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$40,036

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

9.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance594
  2. 2.Manufacturing (Group)395
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)314
  4. 4.Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities261
  5. 5.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining179

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations708
  2. 2.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations567
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations538
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations443
  5. 5.Service Occupations430

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 3.75×)163
  2. 2.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.69×)269
  3. 3.Manufacturing (LQ 1.58×)428
  4. 4.Retail Trade (LQ 1.09×)325
  5. 5.Construction (LQ 0.97×)184

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$167,800

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$804/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

81.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999404 (20.1%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999257 (12.8%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999193 (9.6%)
  • $100,000 to $124,999185 (9.2%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999166 (8.3%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999160 (8.0%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

24.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

93.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

61.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$42,861

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

28.1 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

3.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone2,269 (87.3%)
  • Worked At Home188 (7.2%)
  • Carpooled102 (3.9%)
  • Other14 (0.5%)
  • Public Transit10 (0.4%)
  • Walked10 (0.4%)

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.