county

Jim Wells County, TX

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

AI Overview

Jim Wells County, TX is a small South Texas county of 38,863 residents with a relatively young median age of 35.7 and low educational attainment—only 15.2% hold a bachelor's degree or higher. The labor market shows strain, with a 5.6% unemployment rate, 55.2% labor force participation, and a 23.2% poverty rate, though median worker earnings of $33,488 and a median home value of $104,800 reflect a low-cost operating environment. Population has declined 5.7% over five years, and per capita income of $25,529 sits well below national averages.

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

Population

38,863

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$51,896

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

35.7 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-5.7% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone26,412 (68.0%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race8,523 (21.9%)
  • Some Other Race Alone2,598 (6.7%)
  • Black or African American Alone548 (1.4%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races320 (0.8%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone204 (0.5%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish17,252
  2. 2.Arabic176
  3. 3.Other Indo-European113
  4. 4.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)55
  5. 5.German or other West Germanic32

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

27.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

56.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

15.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

4.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,709

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$42,609

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$25,529

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

5.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

23.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance4,283
  2. 2.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining1,967
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)1,659
  4. 4.Construction (Group)1,482
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services1,013

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations4,733
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations3,079
  3. 3.Service Occupations3,049
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations2,807
  5. 5.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations1,720

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 8.20×)1,999
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 1.28×)921
  3. 3.Other Services (LQ 1.21×)872
  4. 4.Retail Trade (LQ 1.15×)1,906
  5. 5.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.11×)3,965

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$104,800

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$885/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

68.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,999911 (10.0%)
  • $50,000 to $59,999848 (9.3%)
  • $250,000 to $299,999779 (8.6%)
  • $175,000 to $199,999728 (8.0%)
  • $90,000 to $99,999610 (6.7%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999602 (6.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

15.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

79.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

55.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$33,488

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

24.3 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

6.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone12,233 (80.1%)
  • Carpooled1,415 (9.3%)
  • Worked At Home1,273 (8.3%)
  • Walked243 (1.6%)
  • Other91 (0.6%)
  • Motorcycle11 (0.1%)

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.