county

Herkimer County, NY

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

AI Overview

Herkimer County is a small, rural upstate New York county with a population of 59,932 that has contracted 4.1% over five years, reflecting broader regional demographic pressures. The labor force participation rate of 59.4% is relatively low, and just 22.6% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher, with median worker earnings of $43,207 and a 4.4% unemployment rate. Housing costs are notably low—median home value of $135,000 and median gross rent of $811/month—against a median household income of $68,515, pointing to an affordable cost structure despite a GDP per capita of $29,102.

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

Population

59,932

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$68,515

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

44.8 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-4.1% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone54,844 (91.8%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race1,915 (3.2%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races1,152 (1.9%)
  • Black or African American Alone751 (1.3%)
  • Some Other Race Alone610 (1.0%)
  • Asian Alone369 (0.6%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish682
  2. 2.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic669
  3. 3.German or other West Germanic604
  4. 4.Other Indo-European426
  5. 5.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)254

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

20.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

57.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

21.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

2.9%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

3,646

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$29,102

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$35,959

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

4.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

13.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance7,915
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)3,231
  3. 3.Manufacturing (Group)2,784
  4. 4.Construction (Group)2,127
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services1,963

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations10,028
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations5,662
  3. 3.Service Occupations5,068
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations4,040
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations2,830

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 1.41×)626
  2. 2.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 1.27×)8,290
  3. 3.Public Administration (LQ 1.24×)1,631
  4. 4.Construction (LQ 1.15×)2,222
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.11×)3,372

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$135,000

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$811/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

76.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,9992,242 (11.4%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9992,128 (10.8%)
  • $200,000 to $249,9991,754 (8.9%)
  • $125,000 to $149,9991,731 (8.8%)
  • $300,000 to $399,9991,613 (8.2%)
  • $250,000 to $299,9991,422 (7.2%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

22.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

91.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

59.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$43,207

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

25.7 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

9.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone20,830 (77.2%)
  • Worked At Home2,721 (10.1%)
  • Carpooled2,238 (8.3%)
  • Walked865 (3.2%)
  • Other125 (0.5%)
  • Bicycle95 (0.4%)

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.