Official Federal Data
Washington County, Tennessee
FIPS 47179 · Johnson City, TN · Population 136,261
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$62,809 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.3% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
$9.2B ▲
GDP
34.3% ▲
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
$62,809 ▲
Per Capita
$36,806 ▲
Mean Household
$86,311 ▲
Poverty Rate
15.5% ▲
Median Income Comparison
Washington County$62,809
Tennessee$69,595
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 18.7%
18-34 · 25.2%
35-54 · 24%
55-64 · 13.2%
65+ · 18.9%
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+
91.2%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +1.6 pts
34.3%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 1.4 pts
14.5%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +0.4 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
136,261
Population
68,222
Labor Force
Employed
64,947
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.3% ▲ +0.1 pts YoY
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
11.9%
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 15.5%, the rate is in economically distressed territory and supports federal funding narratives (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 11,725 workers (26% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $67,980.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $9.2B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Management of Companies and Enterprises averages $91,749 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $23,447, a 3.9x 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
Health Care & Social Assistance Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
6,101
Cluster Employment
1.67x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Chemical Manufacturing
2.89x 1,049
Health and Personal Care Retailers
1.78x 764
Ambulatory Health Care Services
1.67x 6,101
Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing
1.60x 213
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.59x 1,324
Building Material and Garden Supply Retailers
1.58x 879
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
1.55x 933
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.09x
Food Manufacturing
63 employed
0.12x
Warehousing and Storage
90 employed
0.34x
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
57 employed
0.34x
Educational Services
449 employed
0.35x
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
128 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Chemical Manufacturing concentrates at 2.89x the national norm.
- Cluster depth: 7 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
$249,000 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,005 ▲
Rent/Mo
64.5% ▲
Owner-Occ
8.6% ▼
Vacancy
4.0x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$887/mo
1 Bedroom
$893/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,132/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,398/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,548/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,570/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.0x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,570/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
85,064 ▲
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 5 min below national avg
21.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
11.9%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
79%
of prime-age population
▲ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
34.3% ▲
HS Diploma+
91.2% ▲
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
21.2%
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
43.3%
Service
17.1%
Sales & Office
20.9%
Construction / Maint.
7.4%
Production / Transport
11.3%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 64,947 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 21.6-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
Washington County shows emerging potential for chemical manufacturing attraction, with a 2.89x concentration and 1,049 jobs in this sub-sector.
The interconnected base across chemical manufacturing, health and personal care retailers, and ambulatory health care services 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 Washington County, Tennessee, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Washington County, Tennessee?
136,261 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Washington County, Tennessee?
$62,809 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Washington County, Tennessee?
3.3% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Washington County, Tennessee?
$9.2B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).
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