Official Federal Data
Union County, New Jersey
FIPS 34039 · New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ · Population 579,290
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$103,202 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
5.5% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$51.9B ▲
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
$103,202 ▲
Per Capita
$52,874 ▲
Mean Household
$149,595 ▲
Poverty Rate
9.2% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Union County$103,202
New Jersey$103,556
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23.5%
18-34 · 20.8%
35-54 · 27.7%
55-64 · 13%
65+ · 15.1%
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+
86.3%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▼ 3.3 pts
38.9%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +3.2 pts
15.8%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +1.7 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
579,290
Population
317,752
Labor Force
Employed
296,920
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
5.5% ▲ +0.6 pts YoY
Mean Commute 4 min above national avg
30.2 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.2%
Key Takeaways
- Income premium: Households earn well above the national median, supporting strong retail and housing markets.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 36,087 workers (20.4% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $67,003.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $51.9B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $152,715 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $32,301, a 4.7x 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
Manufacturing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
10,128
Cluster Employment
6.74x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Chemical Manufacturing
6.74x 8,937
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
5.20x 845
Support Activities for Transportation
4.66x 5,664
Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles
3.93x 197
Apparel Manufacturing
2.95x 346
2.80x 950
Clothing, Clothing Accessories, Shoe, and Jewelry Retailers
2.45x 4,152
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
2.43x 7,920
Telecommunications
1.94x 1,711
Personal and Laundry Services
1.84x 4,327
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.03x
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
72 employed
0.11x
Air Transportation
91 employed
0.15x
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
217 employed
0.20x
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
125 employed
0.22x
Computing Infrastructure Providers and Data Processing
158 employed
0.38x
Wood Product Manufacturing
224 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Chemical Manufacturing concentrates at 6.74x 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: 7 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
$529,200 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,730 ▲
Rent/Mo
57.4% ▼
Owner-Occ
4.3% ▼
Vacancy
5.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Stretched
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,612/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,822/mo
2 Bedroom
$2,205/mo
3 Bedroom
$2,761/mo
4 Bedroom
$3,137/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$2,580/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- Stretched market: Home value to income ratio of 5.1x is well above the ~4.1x national average; attainable workforce housing may be a recruitment friction.
- Affordable rent tiers: 3 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$2,580/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
355,753 ▲
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 4 min above national avg
30.2 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.2%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
84.9%
of prime-age population
▲ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
38.9% ▲
HS Diploma+
86.3% ▼
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
32,479/yr
13,105/yr
5,800/yr
5,465/yr
3,249/yr
2,792/yr
2,068/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
21.1%
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
41.1%
Service
16%
Sales & Office
19.4%
Construction / Maint.
8.3%
Production / Transport
15.3%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 296,920 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 24,370 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Union County shows strong potential for chemical manufacturing attraction, with a 6.74x concentration and 8,937 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.
The interconnected base across chemical manufacturing, petroleum and coal products manufacturing, and support activities for transportation 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 Union County, New Jersey, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Union County, New Jersey?
579,290 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Union County, New Jersey?
$103,202 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Union County, New Jersey?
5.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Union County, New Jersey?
$51.9B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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