Official Federal Data
Cole County, Missouri
FIPS 29051 · Jefferson City, MO · Population 77,032
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$74,876 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.2% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$7.4B ▲
GDP
38.9% ▲
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
$74,876 ▲
Per Capita
$39,068 ▲
Mean Household
$95,025 ▲
Poverty Rate
9% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Cole County$74,876
Missouri$70,702
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 22.1%
18-34 · 21.8%
35-54 · 25.4%
55-64 · 12.7%
65+ · 18%
Race & Ethnicity
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+
94.2%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +4.6 pts
38.9%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +3.2 pts
14.1%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +0.0 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
77,032
Population
39,321
Labor Force
Employed
38,011
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.2% ▲ +0.1 pts YoY
Mean Commute 8 min below national avg
17.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.2%
Key Takeaways
- Broadly in line with U.S. norms across income, poverty, and education.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Retail Trade employs 5,984 workers (27% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $37,481.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $7.4B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Management of Companies and Enterprises averages $99,316 while Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation averages $21,588, a 4.6x 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.
Cluster Depth
Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Dominant Cluster
Retail Trade Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
1,529
Cluster Employment
2.95x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Printing and Related Support Activities
3.33x 402
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
2.95x 1,529
Computing Infrastructure Providers and Data Processing
2.52x 427
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
2.03x 497
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional Orgs
1.82x 912
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.35x
Real Estate
225 employed
0.39x
Truck Transportation
201 employed
0.40x
Couriers and Messengers
156 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Printing and Related Support Activities concentrates at 3.33x the national norm, strong concentration that anchors the local economy and supports supply-chain attraction strategy.
- Cluster depth: 5 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.
Housing & Affordability
Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026
Housing Overview
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064
$229,600 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$834 ▲
Rent/Mo
67.9% ▲
Owner-Occ
7.3% ▼
Vacancy
3.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$689/mo
1 Bedroom
$694/mo
2 Bedroom
$910/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,266/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,379/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,872/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.
- Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,872/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
46,131 ▼
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 8 min below national avg
17.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.2%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
80.1%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
38.9% ▲
HS Diploma+
94.2% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
31,975/yr
9,503/yr
6,224/yr
5,730/yr
3,677/yr
3,445/yr
3,396/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
21.2%
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
44.7%
Service
13.4%
Sales & Office
22%
Construction / Maint.
9%
Production / Transport
10.9%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 38,011 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 17.9-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 21,457 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Cole County shows meaningful potential for printing and related support activities attraction, with a 3.33x concentration and 402 jobs in this sub-sector.
The interconnected base across printing and related support activities, sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument, book, and misc. retailers, and computing infrastructure providers and data processing 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 Cole County, Missouri, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Cole County, Missouri?
77,032 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Cole County, Missouri?
$74,876 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Cole County, Missouri?
3.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Cole County, Missouri?
$7.4B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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