ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Oglethorpe County, Georgia

FIPS 13221 · Athens-Clarke County, GA · Population 15,509
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$75,034
Median Income
$80,734 national
2.9%
Unemployment
4% national
$518M
GDP
25.3%
Bachelor's+
35.7% national
Small population: 15,509 residents. These figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 5-year estimates, which carry a wide margin of error for places under 20,000 people. Read each value as an approximate range, and treat year-over-year changes as indicative rather than exact. A small shift can reflect survey sampling, not a real change on the ground.

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
$75,034
Per Capita
$34,476
Mean Household
$90,105
Poverty Rate
11.6% approx.
Median Income Comparison
Oglethorpe County$75,034
Georgia$77,353
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 19.1% (2,969 residents) 55-64: 14.9% (2,304 residents) 35-54: 25.5% (3,952 residents) 18-34: 19% (2,952 residents) Under 18: 21.5% (3,332 residents) 43 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 21.5%
18-34 · 19%
35-54 · 25.5%
55-64 · 14.9%
65+ · 19.1%
Race & Ethnicity
White74%
Black or African American15.4%
Asian0.8%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)6.8%
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+
88.3%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▼ 1.3 pts
25.3%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 10.4 pts
10.6%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 3.5 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
15,509
Population
7,586
Labor Force
Employed
7,322
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
2.9% ▼ 0.1 pts YoY
Mean Commute 6 min above national avg
32.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.4%
Key Takeaways
  • Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 10.4 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
  • Aging population: Median age of 43 is materially above the U.S. norm; succession planning and senior-services demand are real factors.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$518M
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 Oglethorpe County, Georgia, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Construction
230 22.1%
$61,925
2Manufacturing
218 20.9%
$80,720
3Administrative and Support and Waste Management
158 15.2%
$26,380
4Retail Trade
151 14.5%
$26,972
5Health Care and Social Assistance
148 14.2%
$42,911
6Educational Services
50 4.8%
$26,464
7Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
37 3.6%
$51,361
8Transportation and Warehousing
33 3.2%
$48,196
9Real Estate and Rental and Leasing
17 1.6%
$30,823
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Construction employs 230 workers (22.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $61,925.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $518M (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Manufacturing averages $80,720 while Administrative and Support and Waste Management averages $26,380, a 3.1x 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
10.08x
67
Specialty Trade Contractors
3.19x
209
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.13x
28
2.09x
594

Cluster Depth

Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Goods-Producing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
594
Cluster Employment
2.09x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Crop Production
10.08x 67
Specialty Trade Contractors
3.19x 209
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.13x 28
2.09x 594

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Crop Production concentrates at 10.08x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
  • Cluster depth: 4 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single employer or sector.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Oglethorpe 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
$231,600
Median Home Value vs 2019
$913
Rent/Mo
83.8%
Owner-Occ
16.9%
Vacancy
3.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,159/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,183/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,331/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,734/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,831/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,876/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.1x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
  • High home ownership: 83.8% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
  • Elevated vacancy: 16.9% vacancy rate. In resort, rural, and seasonal markets much of this is recreational/seasonal (second homes), not available supply; confirm the vacancy-by-reason split before treating it as a redevelopment opportunity.
  • Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,876/mo), a clear cost-of-living advantage for workforce attraction.
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
9,208
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 6 min above national avg
32.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.4%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
79.1%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 62.3% of working-age population (18-64) 62% Participation
▲ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
25.3%
HS Diploma+
88.3%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
48,676/yr
University of Georgia 13,515/yr
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus 9,969/yr
Georgia State University 8,351/yr
Kennesaw State University 7,682/yr
Georgia Southern University 5,669/yr
Savannah College of Art and Design 3,490/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
25%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.

Workforce by Occupation

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
35.9%
Service
17.6%
Sales & Office
20.7%
Construction / Maint.
8.5%
Production / Transport
17.1%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 7,322 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Succession risk is real: 25% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
  • Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 31,835 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources

Sample AI Insight

Oglethorpe County shows strong potential for crop production attraction, with a 10.08x concentration and 67 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 25% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

The interconnected base across crop production, specialty trade contractors, and gasoline stations and fuel dealers 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 Oglethorpe County, Georgia, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Oglethorpe County, Georgia?

15,509 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Oglethorpe County, Georgia?

$75,034 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Oglethorpe County, Georgia?

2.9% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Oglethorpe County, Georgia?

$518M (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).