Official Federal Data
Harrisonburg city, Virginia
FIPS 51660 · Harrisonburg, VA · Population 51,392
9 Sources
Updated June 22, 2026
$62,254 ▲
Median Income
$80,734 national
3.8% ▲
Unemployment
4% national
26,883
Labor Force
37.5% ▲
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
$62,254 ▲
Per Capita
$28,857 ▲
Mean Household
$82,014 ▲
Poverty Rate
25.7% ▼
Median Income Comparison
Harrisonburg city$62,254
Virginia$93,170
National$80,734
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B02001, B03003
Cohorts
Under 18 · 17.3%
18-34 · 44.3%
35-54 · 20.4%
55-64 · 7.4%
65+ · 10.5%
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+
84.3%
High School+
National: 89.6%
▼ 5.3 pts
37.5%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
▲ +1.8 pts
18.7%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
▲ +4.6 pts
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
51,392
Population
26,883
Labor Force
Employed
24,986
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.8% ▲ +0.4 pts YoY
Mean Commute 9 min below national avg
17.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.1%
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 25.7%, the rate is in economically distressed territory and supports federal funding narratives (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).
- Young population: Median age of 25 is materially below the U.S. norm, a workforce pipeline asset.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
Key Takeaways
- Largest sector: Accommodation and Food Services employs 4,936 workers (23.8% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $24,171.
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $91,559 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $24,171, a 3.8x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW.
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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
Accommodation & Food Services Cluster
Coherent grouping of concentrated sub-sectors, signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
4,601
Cluster Employment
1.88x
Peak LQ
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
Food Manufacturing
6.09x 2,167
Printing and Related Support Activities
4.36x 301
Animal Production and Aquaculture
2.36x 128
Building Material and Garden Supply Retailers
2.08x 571
Food Services and Drinking Places
1.88x 4,601
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.74x 715
General Merchandise Retailers
1.62x 1,048
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, realistic diversification targets. Source: BLS QCEW
0.27x
Warehousing and Storage
104 employed
0.30x
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
133 employed
0.32x
Administrative and Support Services
541 employed
0.38x
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
80 employed
0.38x
Management of Companies and Enterprises
200 employed
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Food Manufacturing concentrates at 6.09x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
- 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
$299,100 ▲
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,184 ▲
Rent/Mo
39.5% ▼
Owner-Occ
7% ▼
Vacancy
4.8x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026
Studio
$1,050/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,057/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,322/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,801/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,125/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,556/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.
- Renter-majority market: 39.5% owner-occupied; flexible labor mobility but consider home-buying pipeline if attracting families.
- Affordable rent tiers: 3 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom tiers sit below the 30%-of-median-income affordability threshold (~$1,556/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
37,092 ▼
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 9 min below national avg
17.1 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
9.1%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
84.9%
of prime-age population
▲ vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
37.5% ▲
HS Diploma+
84.3% ▲
Regional / Statewide Institutions
Total credentials awarded
72,277/yr
25,513/yr
10,335/yr
10,020/yr
9,615/yr
9,087/yr
7,707/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
10.3%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
37.7%
Service
20.8%
Sales & Office
15.7%
Construction / Maint.
7.5%
Production / Transport
18.2%
Bars scaled 2× for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 24,986 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Short commutes: 17.1-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 45,868 annual credentials.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 9 federal data sources
Sample AI Insight
Harrisonburg city shows strong potential for food manufacturing attraction, with a 6.09x concentration and 2,167 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.
The interconnected base across food manufacturing, printing and related support activities, and animal production and aquaculture 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 Harrisonburg city, Virginia, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Harrisonburg city, Virginia?
51,392 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Harrisonburg city, Virginia?
$62,254 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Harrisonburg city, Virginia?
3.8% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
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