Official Federal Data
Macon County, Alabama
Auburn-Opelika, AL · Population 18,691
10 Sources
Updated September 10, 2026
$43,707 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
4% down from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$765M up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
21.1% up from the baseline named below
Bachelor's+ vs 2019
35.7% national
Small population: 18,691 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 (nominal)
$43,707 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$26,341 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$63,220 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$49,724 metro RPP 87.9
Poverty Rate
24.3% down from 2019 vs 2019approx.
Median Income Comparison
Macon County$43,707
Alabama$63,999
National$80,734
Macon County is $20,292 (31.7%) below the Alabama median.
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for Auburn-Opelika, AL, 87.9 against a national average of 100 (2024). BEA publishes regional price parity at state and metropolitan level only; there is no county figure, so the metro index stands in for Macon County and the adjusted median is an approximation. Per capita and mean household income above are nominal and carry no adjustment.
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B01001, B02001, B03003
CohortsShare of total population
Under 18 · 15.4%
18-34 · 33.3%
35-54 · 16.9%
55-64 · 13.1%
65+ · 21.2%
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+
84.6%
High School+
National: 89.6%
down from national 5.0 pts vs national
21.1%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
down from national 14.6 pts vs national
9.9%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
down from national 4.2 pts vs national
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
18,691
Population
8,287
Labor Force
Employed
7,600
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4% down from 2024 0.3 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 3 min below national avg
23.7 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
7.6%
Labor Force and Employed are ACS 5-Year survey estimates; the Unemployment Rate above comes from BLS LAUS, a separate monthly survey with its own methodology. The two won't reconcile by subtracting one from the other.
Key Takeaways
- Income gap: Households earn meaningfully less than the national median, which directly affects retail demand, housing absorption, and tax base.
- Below the state median: Median household income runs $20,292 (31.7%) under the Alabama median, so statewide income averages overstate local household buying power.
- Cost of living stretches income further: Local prices run 12.1% below the national average, so the nominal median of $43,707 is worth $49,724 at national average prices. BEA publishes price parity at metro level, not county level.
- Elevated poverty: At 24.3%, the rate is in economically distressed territory and supports federal funding narratives (CDFI, NMTC, EDA).
- Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 14.6 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
$765M up from 2023 +4% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+4% real (inflation-adjusted)
·
+7.6% nominal
· 2023 to 2024
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis · level and nominal change from CAGDP2 (current dollars); real change from CAGDP9 (chained 2017 dollars), both all-industry total. The two series agree in 2017, the chain reference year, and diverge by the amount of price change since.
87.9
Cost of Living · metro · Below Avg
Key Takeaways
- Largest private-sector industry: Retail Trade employs 349 workers (35.6% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $27,782. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 2,604 and is counted separately.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $765M (2024).
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $64,939 while Retail Trade averages $27,782, a 2.3x 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.
Cluster Depth
Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
1 sub-sector at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Retail Trade Cluster at 100% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
141
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
7.65x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
7.65x 141
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers concentrates at 7.65x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
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, B25004
$102,000 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$734 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
61.5% down from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
25% down from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
3.3% available
for rent or sale
for rent or sale
2.3x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Affordable
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
HUD publishes these by FMR area, which may cover more than one county · Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026 · Affordability threshold and renter cost burden from Census ACS B25119, B25070
Studio
$720/mo
1 Bedroom
$758/mo
2 Bedroom
$995/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,222/mo
4 Bedroom
$1,501/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$723/mo, from a renter median of $28,913) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 38.7% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 23% pay 50% or more.
Key Takeaways
- Affordable market: Home value to income ratio of 2.3x is well below the ~4.1x national average; supports talent attraction and family settlement narratives.
- Elevated vacancy: 25% of housing units are vacant, above the Alabama rate of 14.5%, and down from 27.4% in 2019.
- Vacancy composition: the largest vacancy category is other vacant at 52.4% of vacant units, with seasonal and recreational use at 10.1%.
- Genuinely available supply: units listed for rent or for sale are 13.4% of the vacant stock, or 3.3% of all housing units against the 25% headline vacancy rate. That is the figure to plan an incoming employer's housing against, and the gap between the two is the redevelopment and conversion opportunity.
- Affordable rent tiers: 1 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $28,913 can pay without cost burden (~$723/mo), and 38.7% of renter households are measured as cost-burdened.
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, B23001, B23025, B08303, B08301
11,837 down from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 3 min below national avg
23.7 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
7.6%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
74%
of prime-age population
Prime-age rate numerator is civilian employed (B23001); the denominator is total population aged 25-54 (B01001), which also includes armed forces.
of population age 16 and over (16,205)
unchanged from 2019 vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
21.1% up from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
84.6% up from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in Macon County
1 institution in Macon County reporting credentials to College Scorecard
Credentials awarded in Macon County
535/yr
535/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
20.7%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 13.1% of total population, the basis used in the Demographics cohort chart.
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
28.6%
Service
23.4%
Sales & Office
19.1%
Construction / Maint.
6.3%
Production / Transport
22.6%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 40% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 7,600 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Low participation: 51.2% labor force participation against a labor force that grew 3.4% between 2019 and 2024, so workforce development programs may unlock additional supply.
- Talent pipeline: 1 institution in Macon County awards 535 credentials a year. Employers drawing from a wider labor shed should read this alongside institutions outside the county, which this page does not aggregate.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
Sample output. Pulse AI analysis draws on 10 federal data sources.
Sample AI Insight
Macon County shows strong potential for gasoline stations and fuel dealers attraction, with a 7.65x concentration and 141 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally.
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 LAUS2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
BEA Regional Price Parity2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23
American Community Survey figures on this page are 2020-2024 five-year averages rather than single-year counts. A five-year estimate pools 60 months of survey responses, so each value describes the period as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Key economic and demographic figures for Macon County, Alabama, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Macon County, Alabama?
18,691 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Macon County, Alabama?
$43,707 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for Auburn-Opelika, AL (87.9 against a national average of 100), that is $49,724 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at metro level; there is no county-level figure.
What is the unemployment rate in Macon County, Alabama?
4% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Macon County, Alabama?
$765M (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).
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