ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Shelby County, Ohio

FIPS 39149 · Sidney, OH · Population 47,929
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$73,978
Median Income
$80,734 national
4.2%
Unemployment
4% national
$4.1B
GDP
21.4%
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
$73,978
Per Capita
$37,984
Mean Household
$94,849
Poverty Rate
11.6%
Median Income Comparison
Shelby County$73,978
Ohio$71,389
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 18.1% (8,689 residents) 55-64: 13.7% (6,550 residents) 35-54: 23.4% (11,213 residents) 18-34: 20.3% (9,753 residents) Under 18: 24.5% (11,724 residents) 40 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 24.5%
18-34 · 20.3%
35-54 · 23.4%
55-64 · 13.7%
65+ · 18.1%
Race & Ethnicity
White92%
Black or African American2.2%
Asian0.6%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)1.7%
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+
91.4%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +1.8 pts
21.4%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 14.3 pts
7.1%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 7.0 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
47,929
Population
24,769
Labor Force
Employed
23,761
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4.2% ▲ +0.2 pts YoY
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.0 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5%
Key Takeaways
  • Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 14.3 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$4.1B
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 Shelby County, Ohio, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Manufacturing
11,597 62.7%
$77,864
2Retail Trade
1,830 9.9%
$32,568
3Accommodation and Food Services
1,508 8.1%
$16,640
4Administrative and Support and Waste Management
1,457 7.9%
$39,981
5Wholesale Trade
1,164 6.3%
$66,769
6Other Services (except Public Administration)
584 3.2%
$31,263
7Finance and Insurance
268 1.4%
$73,039
8Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation
102 0.6%
$24,937
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Manufacturing employs 11,597 workers (62.7% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $77,864.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $4.1B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Manufacturing averages $77,864 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $16,640, 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.

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).
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
15.22x
4,476
Machinery Manufacturing
13.00x
2,395
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
10.11x
1,199
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
4.56x
1,101
Primary Metal Manufacturing
3.73x
229
3.52x
13,511
Truck Transportation
2.93x
734
Food Manufacturing
2.88x
867
Chemical Manufacturing
2.79x
422
Wood Product Manufacturing
1.92x
131

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
13,511
Cluster Employment
3.52x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
15.22x 4,476
Machinery Manufacturing
13.00x 2,395
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
10.11x 1,199
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
4.56x 1,101
Primary Metal Manufacturing
3.73x 229
3.52x 13,511
Truck Transportation
2.93x 734
Food Manufacturing
2.88x 867
Chemical Manufacturing
2.79x 422
Wood Product Manufacturing
1.92x 131

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.19x
Insurance Carriers and Related Activities
82 employed
0.28x
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
71 employed
0.31x
Ambulatory Health Care Services
473 employed
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Transportation Equipment Manufacturing concentrates at 15.22x 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.
Shelby 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
$208,100
Median Home Value vs 2019
$922
Rent/Mo
73.7%
Owner-Occ
6.2%
Vacancy
2.8x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Affordable
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$720/mo
1 Bedroom
$787/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,033/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,384/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,448/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,849/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • Affordable market: Home value to income ratio of 2.8x is well below the ~4.1x national average; supports talent attraction and family settlement narratives.
  • High home ownership: 73.7% 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 (~$1,849/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
27,516
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 7 min below national avg
19.0 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
85.2%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 68.4% of working-age population (18-64) 68% Participation
▼ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
21.4%
HS Diploma+
91.4%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
61,261/yr
Ohio State University-Main Campus 16,872/yr
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus 12,161/yr
Sinclair Community College 10,362/yr
Ohio University-Main Campus 9,302/yr
Kent State University at Kent 6,840/yr
Miami University-Oxford 5,724/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
23.8%
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
32.6%
Service
13.6%
Sales & Office
15.6%
Construction / Maint.
9.5%
Production / Transport
28.7%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 23,761 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Succession risk is real: 23.8% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
  • Short commutes: 19.0-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

Shelby County shows strong potential for transportation equipment manufacturing attraction, with a 15.22x concentration and 4,476 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 23.8% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

The interconnected base across transportation equipment manufacturing, machinery manufacturing, and plastics and rubber products 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 Shelby County, Ohio, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Shelby County, Ohio?

47,929 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Shelby County, Ohio?

$73,978 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Shelby County, Ohio?

4.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Shelby County, Ohio?

$4.1B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).