Official Federal Data
Putnam County, Tennessee
FIPS 47141 · Cookeville, TN · Population 82,558
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$58,912 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.5% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$5.3B ▲
GDP
29.8% ▲
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
$58,912 ▲
Per Capita
$31,985 ▲
Mean Household
$78,922 ▲
Poverty Rate
18.4% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Putnam County$58,912
Tennessee$69,595
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 20.9%
18-34 · 28.1%
35-54 · 22.7%
55-64 · 11.8%
65+ · 16.5%
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+
89%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▼ 0.6 pts
29.8%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 5.9 pts
11.6%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 2.5 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
82,558
Population
41,479
Labor Force
Employed
39,797
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.5% ▲ +0.2 pts YoY
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
10.1%
Key Takeaways
- Income gap: Households earn meaningfully less than the national median, which directly affects retail demand, housing absorption, and tax base.
- Elevated poverty: At 18.4%, the rate is in economically distressed territory and supports federal funding narratives (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).
- Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 5.9 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Retail Trade employs 5,449 workers (19.2% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $37,699.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $5.3B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $78,363 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $22,005, 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
Manufacturing Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
2,577
Cluster Employment
3.33x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
3.33x 1,480
Furniture and Related Product Manufacturing
2.91x 248
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
2.54x 269
Machinery Manufacturing
2.08x 580
General Merchandise Retailers
1.77x 1,461
Truck Transportation
1.67x 632
Credit Intermediation and Related Activities
1.67x 1,096
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.54x 804
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.13x
Management of Companies and Enterprises
90 employed
0.23x
Insurance Carriers and Related Activities
156 employed
0.23x
Educational Services
192 employed
0.29x
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
66 employed
0.32x
Utilities
50 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Transportation Equipment Manufacturing concentrates at 3.33x the national norm, strong concentration that anchors the local economy and supports supply-chain attraction strategy.
- Cluster depth: 8 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
$282,500 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$908 ▲
Rent/Mo
61.2% ▼
Owner-Occ
8% ▼
Vacancy
4.8x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$752/mo
1 Bedroom
$818/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,014/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,409/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,557/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,473/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.8x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- Affordable rent tiers: 4 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,473/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
51,711 ▲
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
10.1%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
80.2%
of prime-age population
▲ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
29.8% ▲
HS Diploma+
89% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
26,245/yr
8,049/yr
4,862/yr
4,677/yr
3,604/yr
2,551/yr
2,502/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
18.8%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
36.9%
Service
17.4%
Sales & Office
19.8%
Construction / Maint.
9%
Production / Transport
17%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 39,797 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 21.1-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 17,588 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Putnam County shows meaningful potential for transportation equipment manufacturing attraction, with a 3.33x concentration and 1,480 jobs in this sub-sector.
The interconnected base across transportation equipment manufacturing, furniture and related product manufacturing, and nonmetallic mineral product 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 Putnam County, Tennessee, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Putnam County, Tennessee?
82,558 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Putnam County, Tennessee?
$58,912 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Putnam County, Tennessee?
3.5% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Putnam County, Tennessee?
$5.3B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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