Official Federal Data
Yellowstone County, Montana
FIPS 30111 · Billings, MT · Population 168,957
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$76,570 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.2% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$14B ▲
GDP
34.1% ▲
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
$76,570 ▲
Per Capita
$43,898 ▲
Mean Household
$104,900 ▲
Poverty Rate
9.2% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Yellowstone County$76,570
Montana$72,509
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23%
18-34 · 21.6%
35-54 · 24.9%
55-64 · 12.2%
65+ · 18.3%
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+
95.5%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +5.9 pts
34.1%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 1.6 pts
10.4%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 3.7 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
168,957
Population
89,027
Labor Force
Employed
85,982
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.2% ▲ +0.4 pts YoY
Mean Commute 8 min below national avg
18.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
8.9%
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: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 15,681 workers (23.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $75,798.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $14B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $99,150 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $27,541, a 3.6x 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
Health Care & Social Assistance Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
6,980
Cluster Employment
2.23x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
20.05x 1,230
Pipeline Transportation
6.89x 217
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
2.35x 1,953
Hospitals
2.23x 6,980
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional Orgs
1.85x 1,481
Couriers and Messengers
1.80x 1,136
Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
1.78x 3,406
Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries
1.74x 1,866
Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction
1.73x 1,151
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.60x 1,840
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.11x
Warehousing and Storage
122 employed
0.13x
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
130 employed
0.18x
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
88 employed
0.32x
Management of Companies and Enterprises
461 employed
0.37x
Chemical Manufacturing
186 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing concentrates at 20.05x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
- Cluster depth: 10 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
$349,500 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,131 ▲
Rent/Mo
69.6% ▲
Owner-Occ
5.8% ▼
Vacancy
4.6x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,016/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,109/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,417/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,951/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,216/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,914/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.6x 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 (~$1,914/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
99,262 ▲
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 8 min below national avg
18.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
8.9%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
83.7%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
34.1% ▲
HS Diploma+
95.5% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
8,624/yr
3,536/yr
3,194/yr
795/yr
425/yr
381/yr
293/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
20.8%
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
39.4%
Service
17.1%
Sales & Office
21.6%
Construction / Maint.
10.8%
Production / Transport
11%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 85,982 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 18.6-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 7,525 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Yellowstone County shows strong potential for petroleum and coal products manufacturing attraction, with a 20.05x concentration and 1,230 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.
The interconnected base across petroleum and coal products manufacturing, pipeline transportation, and sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument, book, and misc. retailers 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
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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 Yellowstone County, Montana, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Yellowstone County, Montana?
168,957 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Yellowstone County, Montana?
$76,570 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Yellowstone County, Montana?
3.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Yellowstone County, Montana?
$14B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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