ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Carson County, Texas

FIPS 48065 · Amarillo, TX · Population 5,801
9 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
$85,231
Median Income
$80,734 national
2.9%
Unemployment
4% national
$1.4B
GDP
26.4%
Bachelor's+
35.7% national
Small population: 5,801 residents. These figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 5-year estimates, which carry a wide margin of error for places under 20,000 people. Read each value as an approximate range, and treat year-over-year changes as indicative rather than exact. A small shift can reflect survey sampling, not a real change on the ground.

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
$85,231
Per Capita
$42,049
Mean Household
$102,627
Poverty Rate
7.4% approx.
Median Income Comparison
Carson County$85,231
Texas$78,476
National$80,734

Population Profile

Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
65+: 20.6% (1,196 residents) 55-64: 12.3% (714 residents) 35-54: 24.5% (1,423 residents) 18-34: 19.3% (1,120 residents) Under 18: 23.2% (1,348 residents) 41 Median Age
Cohorts
Under 18 · 23.2%
18-34 · 19.3%
35-54 · 24.5%
55-64 · 12.3%
65+ · 20.6%
Race & Ethnicity
White90.3%
Black or African American0.7%
Asian0.3%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)10.9%
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+
93.8%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▲ +4.2 pts
26.4%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▼ 9.3 pts
9.7%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▼ 4.4 pts

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
5,801
Population
2,969
Labor Force
Employed
2,934
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
2.9%
Mean Commute 2 min below national avg
24.5 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
8.2%
Key Takeaways
  • Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 9.3 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$1.4B
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 Carson County, Texas, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Construction
725 51.1%
$80,877
2Retail Trade
206 14.5%
$32,323
3Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
141 9.9%
$127,230
4Administrative and Support and Waste Management
88 6.2%
$67,937
5Utilities
71 5.0%
$109,786
6Transportation and Warehousing
61 4.3%
$93,311
7Accommodation and Food Services
48 3.4%
$17,074
8Finance and Insurance
41 2.9%
$68,393
9Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation
20 1.4%
$20,660
10Wholesale Trade
19 1.3%
$61,001
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Construction employs 725 workers (51.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $80,877.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $1.4B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $127,230 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $17,074, a 7.5x 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).
5.73x
5,857
Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry
5.66x
97
Utilities
2.61x
71
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.45x
116
Crop Production
2.30x
55

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
5,857
Cluster Employment
5.73x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
5.73x 5,857
Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry
5.66x 97
Utilities
2.61x 71
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
2.45x 116
Crop Production
2.30x 55

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.29x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
141 employed
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: concentrates at 5.73x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
  • Cluster depth: 5 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.
Carson 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
$143,000
Median Home Value vs 2019
$956
Rent/Mo
79.2%
Owner-Occ
18.4%
Vacancy
1.7x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Affordable
vs. ~4.1x national average

HUD Fair Market Rents

Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$778/mo
1 Bedroom
$903/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,106/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,503/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,742/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$2,131/mo) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Key Takeaways
  • Affordable market: Home value to income ratio of 1.7x is well below the ~4.1x national average; supports talent attraction and family settlement narratives.
  • High home ownership: 79.2% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
  • Elevated vacancy: 18.4% 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.
  • Broadly affordable rents: All 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$2,131/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
3,257
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 2 min below national avg
24.5 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
8.2%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
82.2%
of prime-age population
Labor force participation rate: 66.7% of working-age population (18-64) 67% Participation
▲ vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
26.4%
HS Diploma+
93.8%
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
79,681/yr
Texas A&M University-College Station 20,117/yr
The University of Texas at Austin 17,432/yr
Lone Star College System 11,449/yr
Dallas College 10,913/yr
University of Houston 10,852/yr
Texas State University 8,918/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
21.9%
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
40.9%
Service
13.4%
Sales & Office
19.8%
Construction / Maint.
9%
Production / Transport
16.9%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 2,934 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Talent pipeline: 6 regional institutions feed the workforce; the top three combined produce 48,998 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources

Sample AI Insight

Carson County shows strong potential for attraction, with a 5.73x concentration and 5,857 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.

The interconnected base across , support activities for agriculture and forestry, and utilities 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 Carson County, Texas, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Carson County, Texas?

5,801 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Carson County, Texas?

$85,231 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Carson County, Texas?

2.9% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Carson County, Texas?

$1.4B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP1).