ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Alachua County, Florida

FIPS 12001 · Gainesville, FL · Population 285,492
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$61,949
Median Income
$80,734 national
4.5%
Unemployment
4% national
$20.9B
GDP
48.8%
Bachelor's+
35.7% national

Demographics & Population

Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 · 5-Year Estimates

Household Income

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
Median Household
$61,949
Per Capita
$38,869
Mean Household
$93,386
Poverty Rate
21.2%
Median Income Comparison
Alachua County$61,949
Florida$74,568
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 15.3% (43,645 residents) 55-64: 9.9% (28,319 residents) 35-54: 21.3% (60,923 residents) 18-34: 35.7% (101,825 residents) Under 18: 17.8% (50,780 residents) 32 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 17.8%
18-34 · 35.7%
35-54 · 21.3%
55-64 · 9.9%
65+ · 15.3%
Race & Ethnicity
White61.4%
Black or African American19.3%
Asian6.1%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)12.6%
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnic category and overlaps with the race categories above.

Educational Attainment

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · Population 25+
94.5%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +4.9 pts
48.8%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +13.1 pts
25.5%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +11.4 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
285,492
Population
143,820
Labor Force
Employed
137,362
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4.5% ▲ +0.7 pts YoY
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.1%
Key Takeaways
  • Income gap: Households earn meaningfully less than the national median, which directly affects retail demand, housing absorption, and tax base.
  • Elevated poverty: At 21.2%, the rate is in economically distressed territory and supports federal funding narratives (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).
  • Talent advantage: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment exceeds the national average by 13.1 pts, supports knowledge-economy and tech attraction.
  • Young population: Median age of 32 is materially below the U.S. norm, a workforce pipeline asset.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$20.9B
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis · CAGDP1 Regional GDP

Top Industries by Employment

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics · Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages 2025 Annual
Top industries by employment in Alachua County, Florida, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Health Care and Social Assistance
29,918 33.2%
$68,646
2Retail Trade
14,071 15.6%
$36,979
3Accommodation and Food Services
13,654 15.2%
$27,080
4Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
6,898 7.7%
$90,466
5Administrative and Support and Waste Management
6,400 7.1%
$44,135
6Construction
5,850 6.5%
$64,822
7Transportation and Warehousing
3,833 4.3%
$56,320
8Finance and Insurance
3,329 3.7%
$94,088
9Other Services (except Public Administration)
3,315 3.7%
$44,648
10Wholesale Trade
2,750 3.1%
$111,354
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 29,918 workers (33.2% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $68,646.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $20.9B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Wholesale Trade averages $111,354 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $27,080, a 4.1x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW + BEA Regional GDP.
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Industry Concentration

Location Quotient measures regional specialization vs. national average. LQ > 1.0 = concentrated.

Location Quotient Analysis

Concentrated Industries
Source: BLS QCEW · 3-digit NAICS sub-sector · Location Quotient vs. national employment share
Same source as the Top Industries table above, sub-sector view surfaces the specialization the supersector view masks (e.g., Plastics & Rubber Manufacturing inside the Manufacturing supersector).
Crop Production
3.17x
1,517
Miscellaneous Manufacturing
2.05x
1,135
Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related
1.86x
971
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
1.53x
571

Cluster Depth

Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Manufacturing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
1,706
Cluster Employment
2.05x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Crop Production
3.17x 1,517
Miscellaneous Manufacturing
2.05x 1,135
Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related
1.86x 971
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
1.53x 571

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.09x
Food Manufacturing
147 employed
0.12x
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
75 employed
0.23x
Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation
116 employed
0.28x
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
360 employed
0.29x
Management of Companies and Enterprises
694 employed
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Crop Production concentrates at 3.17x the national norm, strong concentration that anchors the local economy and supports supply-chain attraction strategy.
  • Cluster depth: 4 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single employer or sector.
  • Attraction whitespace: 8 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5, candidates for diversification or recruitment depending on labor-market fit.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Alachua County's Top Sectors by Workforce Share
Each rectangle's area is proportional to that sector's share of total private-sector employment across all NAICS supersectors. Hover for exact employment.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW 2025 Annual · Private sector, NAICS supersectors

Housing & Affordability

Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026

Housing Overview

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064
$288,800
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,339
Rent/Mo
54.1%
Owner-Occ
8.6%
Vacancy
4.7x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,154/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,246/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,493/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,868/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,977/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,549/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.7x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
  • Affordable rent tiers: 3 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,549/mo).
Source: Census ACS housing tables + HUD Fair Market Rents.

Workforce Pipeline

Labor force readiness, commuting, and workforce composition

Labor Market Overview

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B23025, B08303, B08301
191,067
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.1%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
82.1%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 61.3% of working-age population (18-64) 61% Participation
▲ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
48.8%
HS Diploma+
94.5%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
104,745/yr
University of Central Florida 20,166/yr
Florida International University 18,426/yr
University of Florida 18,084/yr
Valencia College 17,631/yr
Miami Dade College 16,153/yr
University of South Florida 14,285/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
14.8%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)

Workforce by Occupation

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
51.4%
Service
15.8%
Sales & Office
21.1%
Construction / Maint.
4.8%
Production / Transport
6.9%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 137,362 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Short commutes: 21.8-minute mean commute is a quality-of-life and labor-access advantage worth surfacing for site selectors.
  • Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 56,676 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources

Sample AI Insight

Alachua County shows meaningful potential for crop production attraction, with a 3.17x concentration and 1,517 jobs in this sub-sector.

The interconnected base across crop production, miscellaneous manufacturing, and performing arts, spectator sports, and related creates supply-chain attraction leverage rather than single-employer risk, a structural advantage for industrial recruitment.

Industry Shift Analysis

Manufacturing Automation Risk
High
Healthcare Growth Forecast
+4.2% CAGR
Remote Work Migration
67/100

Prospect Match Scores

Advanced Manufacturing
92/100
Life Sciences
84/100
Data Centers
71/100
Illustrative example

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Data Sources

Updated from official federal government data.

Census ACS 5-Year2024
BLS QCEW2025 annual
BLS LAUS (via FRED)2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23

Frequently Asked Questions

Key economic and demographic figures for Alachua County, Florida, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Alachua County, Florida?

285,492 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Alachua County, Florida?

$61,949 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Alachua County, Florida?

4.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Alachua County, Florida?

$20.9B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).