county

Union County, SC

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

AI Overview

Union County's economy centers on manufacturing and production-oriented sectors, with a small labor force of roughly 14,500 workers drawing from a county population of 26,990 and a labor force participation rate of just 53.7%. Educational attainment is limited, with only 13.5% of residents holding a bachelor's degree or higher, though median worker earnings of $35,760 reflect wage levels consistent with blue-collar industrial work; unemployment stands at 7.7% and the poverty rate at 22.7%. Housing costs are low—median home value of $100,000 and median gross rent of $770 per month—but the county has shed population, declining 2.4% over five years, and carries a median household income of $41,621 against a GDP per capita of $25,652.

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

Population

26,990

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$41,621

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

44.5 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

-2.4% since 2018

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

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone17,346 (64.5%)
  • Black or African American Alone7,475 (27.8%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races1,487 (5.5%)
  • Some Other Race Alone325 (1.2%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race123 (0.5%)
  • American Indian & Alaska Native Alone81 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish371
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic50
  3. 3.Russian, Polish, or other Slavic31
  4. 4.Other Indo-European16
  5. 5.French (incl. Cajun, Haitian)13

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

21.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

58.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

20.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

1.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

1,659

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$25,652

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$26,723

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

7.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

22.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Manufacturing (Group)2,775
  2. 2.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance2,469
  3. 3.Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities1,060
  4. 4.Retail Trade (Group)957
  5. 5.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services687

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations3,429
  2. 2.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations2,648
  3. 3.Service Occupations2,087
  4. 4.Sales & Office Occupations1,529
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations1,097

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Manufacturing (LQ 2.66×)2,876
  2. 2.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.44×)919
  3. 3.Other Services (LQ 1.13×)578
  4. 4.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 1.08×)188
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 0.96×)1,137

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$100,000

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$770/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

71.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,9991,134 (13.7%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999629 (7.6%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999590 (7.1%)
  • $80,000 to $89,999568 (6.9%)
  • $40,000 to $49,999513 (6.2%)
  • $50,000 to $59,999490 (5.9%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

13.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

80.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

53.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,760

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

27.4 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

11.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone8,699 (83.5%)
  • Carpooled1,221 (11.7%)
  • Worked At Home354 (3.4%)
  • Walked63 (0.6%)
  • Other56 (0.5%)
  • Motorcycle21 (0.2%)

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.