Official Federal Data
Defiance County, Ohio
FIPS 39039 · Defiance, OH · Population 38,343
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$73,064 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
4.5% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$2.2B ▲
GDP
19% ▲
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
$73,064 ▲
Per Capita
$35,589 ▲
Mean Household
$88,073 ▲
Poverty Rate
10.5% ▲
Median Income Comparison
Defiance County$73,064
Ohio$71,389
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 22.5%
18-34 · 20.3%
35-54 · 24.4%
55-64 · 12.6%
65+ · 20.2%
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+
92.8%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +3.2 pts
19%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 16.7 pts
6.5%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 7.6 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
38,343
Population
19,435
Labor Force
Employed
18,432
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4.5% ▲ +0.4 pts YoY
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
6%
Key Takeaways
- Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 16.7 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Manufacturing employs 3,035 workers (25.7% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $83,525.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $2.2B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Manufacturing averages $83,525 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $18,834, a 4.4x 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
Goods-Producing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
3,784
Cluster Employment
1.69x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Animal Production and Aquaculture
6.84x 183
Truck Transportation
4.72x 692
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
3.61x 621
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
2.89x 409
Building Material and Garden Supply Retailers
2.74x 372
General Merchandise Retailers
2.03x 650
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional Orgs
1.94x 275
Machinery Manufacturing
1.87x 202
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.87x 378
1.69x 3,784
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.18x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
195 employed
0.28x
Insurance Carriers and Related Activities
72 employed
0.33x
Real Estate
60 employed
0.38x
Accommodation
73 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Animal Production and Aquaculture concentrates at 6.84x 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
$163,200 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$846 ▲
Rent/Mo
79.3% ▲
Owner-Occ
7.5% ▼
Vacancy
2.2x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Affordable
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$754/mo
1 Bedroom
$799/mo
2 Bedroom
$980/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,239/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,408/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,827/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- Affordable market: Home value to income ratio of 2.2x is well below the ~4.1x national average; supports talent attraction and family settlement narratives.
- High home ownership: 79.3% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
- Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,827/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
21,976 ▼
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.8 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
6%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
84.1%
of prime-age population
▼ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
19% ▲
HS Diploma+
92.8% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
61,261/yr
16,872/yr
12,161/yr
10,362/yr
9,302/yr
6,840/yr
5,724/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
22%
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
28.9%
Service
11.2%
Sales & Office
21.1%
Construction / Maint.
12.1%
Production / Transport
26.7%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 18,432 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 19.8-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 39,395 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Defiance County shows strong potential for animal production and aquaculture attraction, with a 6.84x concentration and 183 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.
The interconnected base across animal production and aquaculture, truck transportation, and transportation equipment 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
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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 Defiance County, Ohio, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Defiance County, Ohio?
38,343 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Defiance County, Ohio?
$73,064 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Defiance County, Ohio?
4.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Defiance County, Ohio?
$2.2B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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