county

Jay County, IN

Demographic and economic profile of Jay County, IN, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Jay County is a small manufacturing-oriented rural county with a population of 20,281 that has contracted 3.4% over five years, signaling ongoing outmigration pressure. The labor force participation rate of 58.9% is modest, and only 12.7% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher, pointing to a predominantly blue-collar workforce; median worker earnings stand at $36,971 against a low cost base where the median home value is $110,100 and median gross rent is $766 per month. A homeownership rate of 79.9% and a mean commute of 22.5 minutes reflect a stable, locally rooted population, while a 3.8% unemployment rate indicates most available workers are currently employed.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

20,281

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$54,969

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

39.5 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-3.4% since 2018

Jay County lost population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone18,919 (93.5%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races590 (2.9%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race404 (2.0%)
  • Some Other Race Alone226 (1.1%)
  • Black or African American Alone67 (0.3%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone12 (0.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.German or other West Germanic775
  2. 2.Spanish270
  3. 3.Other Asian and Pacific Island39
  4. 4.Vietnamese10
  5. 5.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic9

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

25.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

56.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

18.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

907

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$52,743

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$27,105

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

3.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

13.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Manufacturing (Group)2,679
  2. 2.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance1,443
  3. 3.Construction (Group)928
  4. 4.Retail Trade (Group)692
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services589

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations2,852
  2. 2.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,191
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations1,360
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,286
  5. 5.Service Occupations1,192

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 3.19×)452
  2. 2.Manufacturing (LQ 3.15×)2,786
  3. 3.Construction (LQ 1.56×)958
  4. 4.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.01×)525
  5. 5.Public Administration (LQ 0.89×)372

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$110,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$766/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

79.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,999829 (13.3%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999606 (9.7%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999460 (7.4%)
  • $80,000 to $89,999458 (7.3%)
  • $90,000 to $99,999433 (6.9%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999427 (6.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

12.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

86.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

58.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$36,971

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

22.5 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

9.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone6,549 (76.5%)
  • Carpooled877 (10.2%)
  • Worked At Home661 (7.7%)
  • Walked201 (2.3%)
  • Other134 (1.6%)
  • Taxi95 (1.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.