county

Polk County, OR

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

AI Overview

Polk County, OR, a largely rural county adjacent to Salem with a population of 90,549, grew 8.8% over five years and supports an economy where median worker earnings of $41,870 sit below the median household income of $85,118, suggesting multi-earner households are common. The labor force participation rate of 59.9% and unemployment rate of 5.2% reflect a moderately tight workforce, with 30.6% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher. Median home values of $419,500 and median gross rent of $1,270/month indicate moderate housing costs relative to many Oregon metros, and a mean commute of 26.3 minutes points to significant outbound commuting, likely to the Salem area.

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

Population

90,549

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Household Income

$85,118

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

37.8 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+8.8% since 2018

Polk County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone69,670 (77.7%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race5,403 (6.0%)
  • Some Other Race Alone5,318 (5.9%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races4,798 (5.4%)
  • Asian Alone1,703 (1.9%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone1,460 (1.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish7,072
  2. 2.Other Asian and Pacific Island469
  3. 3.Other Indo-European449
  4. 4.German or other West Germanic319
  5. 5.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic263

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

22.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

59.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

18.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

6.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

6,368

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$24,523

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$39,423

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

5.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

12.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance11,533
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)5,132
  3. 3.Public Administration (Group)4,016
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services3,355
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services3,085

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations16,164
  2. 2.Service Occupations8,741
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations7,964
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations4,534
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations3,608

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 2.16×)1,398
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 2.03×)3,880
  3. 3.Retail Trade (LQ 1.22×)5,372
  4. 4.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.13×)10,742
  5. 5.Construction (LQ 1.01×)2,837

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$419,500

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$1,270/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

64.7%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $500,000 to $749,9995,821 (27.3%)
  • $400,000 to $499,9994,939 (23.1%)
  • $300,000 to $399,9994,435 (20.8%)
  • $750,000 to $999,9991,872 (8.8%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9991,039 (4.9%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999619 (2.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

30.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

91.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

59.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$41,870

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

25.3 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone26,915 (66.9%)
  • Worked At Home7,024 (17.5%)
  • Carpooled4,121 (10.2%)
  • Walked1,335 (3.3%)
  • Other348 (0.9%)
  • Bicycle251 (0.6%)

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.