ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Suffolk County, New York

FIPS 36103 · New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ · Population 1,530,146
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$130,686
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.5%
Unemployment
4% national
$139B
GDP
40.2%
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
$130,686
Per Capita
$57,164
Mean Household
$166,220
Poverty Rate
6.4%
Median Income Comparison
Suffolk County$130,686
New York$85,974
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 17.9% (274,038 residents) 55-64: 14.9% (228,300 residents) 35-54: 25.2% (386,323 residents) 18-34: 21.1% (323,586 residents) Under 18: 20.8% (317,899 residents) 42 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 20.8%
18-34 · 21.1%
35-54 · 25.2%
55-64 · 14.9%
65+ · 17.9%
Race & Ethnicity
White65.8%
Black or African American7.5%
Asian4.5%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)22.8%
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+
90.4%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +0.8 pts
40.2%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +4.5 pts
18.6%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +4.5 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
1,530,146
Population
821,352
Labor Force
Employed
781,693
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.5% ▲ +0.1 pts YoY
Mean Commute 5 min above national avg
31.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
12%
Key Takeaways
  • Income premium: Households earn well above the national median, supporting strong retail and housing markets.
  • Aging population: Median age of 42 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

$139B
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 Suffolk County, New York, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Health Care and Social Assistance
111,168 21.9%
$73,745
2Retail Trade
73,395 14.5%
$48,739
3Accommodation and Food Services
55,374 10.9%
$35,390
4Manufacturing
50,061 9.9%
$89,113
5Administrative and Support and Waste Management
47,655 9.4%
$71,531
6Construction
46,897 9.2%
$92,071
7Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
38,666 7.6%
$105,200
8Wholesale Trade
33,692 6.6%
$99,241
9Transportation and Warehousing
27,244 5.4%
$58,279
10Other Services (except Public Administration)
23,472 4.6%
$45,527
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 111,168 workers (21.9% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $73,745.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $139B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $105,200 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $35,390, a 3.0x 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).
Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation
5.86x
14,656
4.23x
4,285
Chemical Manufacturing
3.18x
12,570
Printing and Related Support Activities
1.91x
2,911
Water Transportation
1.84x
560
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
1.69x
7,494

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
22,975
Cluster Employment
3.18x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation
5.86x 14,656
4.23x 4,285
Chemical Manufacturing
3.18x 12,570
Printing and Related Support Activities
1.91x 2,911
Water Transportation
1.84x 560
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
1.69x 7,494

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.06x
Primary Metal Manufacturing
99 employed
0.07x
Animal Production and Aquaculture
83 employed
0.08x
Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry
133 employed
0.18x
Mining (except Oil and Gas)
148 employed
0.18x
Air Transportation
446 employed
0.21x
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
1,605 employed
0.22x
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
108 employed
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation concentrates at 5.86x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
  • Cluster depth: 6 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.
Suffolk 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
$578,400
Median Home Value vs 2019
$2,255
Rent/Mo
82.2%
Owner-Occ
11.7%
Vacancy
4.4x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,992/mo
1 Bedroom
$2,379/mo
2 Bedroom
$2,747/mo
3 Bedroom
$3,563/mo
4 Bedroom
$3,768/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$3,267/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.4x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
  • High home ownership: 82.2% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
  • Elevated vacancy: 11.7% 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.
  • Affordable rent tiers: 3 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$3,267/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
938,209
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 5 min above national avg
31.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
12%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
83.9%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 67.8% of working-age population (18-64) 68% Participation
▲ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
40.2%
HS Diploma+
90.4%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
58,559/yr
New York University 18,769/yr
University at Buffalo 9,530/yr
Cornell University 8,800/yr
Stony Brook University 8,368/yr
Syracuse University 7,300/yr
CUNY Hunter College 5,792/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
24.3%
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
44.4%
Service
16.4%
Sales & Office
21%
Construction / Maint.
8.5%
Production / Transport
9.7%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 781,693 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Succession risk is real: 24.3% 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 37,099 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources

Sample AI Insight

Suffolk County shows strong potential for transit and ground passenger transportation attraction, with a 5.86x concentration and 14,656 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 24.3% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

The interconnected base across transit and ground passenger transportation, , and chemical manufacturing 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 Suffolk County, New York, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Suffolk County, New York?

1,530,146 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Suffolk County, New York?

$130,686 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Suffolk County, New York?

3.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Suffolk County, New York?

$139B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).