Official Federal Data
North Slope Borough, Alaska
Population 10,810
10 Sources
Updated September 10, 2026
$95,694 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
3.2% down from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$8.1B up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
15.6% down from the baseline named below
Bachelor's+ vs 2019
35.7% national
Small population: 10,810 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)
$95,694 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$57,430 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$127,358 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$93,451 state RPP 102.4
Poverty Rate
11.1% up from 2019 vs 2019approx.
Median Income Comparison
North Slope Borough$95,694
Alaska$92,788
National$80,734
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for Alaska, 102.4 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 state index stands in for North Slope Borough 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 · 25.7%
18-34 · 24.3%
35-54 · 28.6%
55-64 · 13.3%
65+ · 8.1%
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+
87.3%
High School+
National: 89.6%
down from national 2.3 pts vs national
15.6%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
down from national 20.1 pts vs national
6%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
down from national 8.1 pts vs national
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
10,810
Population
6,187
Labor Force
Employed
5,717
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.2% down from 2024 0.1 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 26 min below national avg
0.0 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5.6%
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 premium: Households earn well above the national median, supporting strong retail and housing markets.
- Talent gap: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment trails the national average by 20.1 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
- Young population: Median age of 35 is materially below the U.S. norm, a workforce pipeline asset.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
$8.1B up from 2023 +8.3% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+8.3% real (inflation-adjusted)
·
+2.5% 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.
102.4
Cost of Living · state · Above Avg
Key Takeaways
- Largest private-sector industry: Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction employs 5,742 workers (66.4% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $163,489. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 1,884 and is counted separately.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $8.1B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction averages $163,489 while Retail Trade averages $41,245, a 4.0x 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
2 sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Mining, Quarrying & Oil/Gas Extraction Cluster at 100% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
5,742
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
200.61x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail
Support Activities for Mining
200.61x 4,113
Oil and Gas Extraction
179.59x 1,629
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, screened against local siting constraints. Source: BLS QCEW
0.26x
General Merchandise Retailers
64 employed
0.41x
Food Services and Drinking Places
373 employed
0.48x
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
383 employed
Screened on industrial power cost, rail-truck intermodal access, land base.
Industrial electricity in Alaska costs 20.03¢/kWh against 8.62¢/kWh nationally (2025).
Alaska has 1 rail-truck intermodal terminal, the nearest 577 miles from the borough.
Land area 88793 sq mi, larger than 100% of US counties.
Sources: EIA, BTS NTAD, Census Gazetteer.
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Support Activities for Mining concentrates at 200.61x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
- Attraction whitespace: 3 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5 with at least 50 employed, 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, B25004
$218,300 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,254 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
49.1% down from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
13.7% down from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
2.9% 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
$1,115/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,239/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,625/mo
3 Bedroom
$1,958/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,664/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$2,304/mo, from a renter median of $92,167) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 24.8% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 7.4% 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.
- Renter-majority market: 49.1% owner-occupied; flexible labor mobility but consider home-buying pipeline if attracting families.
- Vacancy level: 13.7% of housing units are vacant, below the Alaska rate of 17.6%, and down from 24.4% in 2019.
- Vacancy composition: the largest vacancy category is other vacant at 55.8% of vacant units, with seasonal and recreational use at 22.7%.
- Genuinely available supply: units listed for rent or for sale are 21.5% of the vacant stock, or 2.9% of all housing units against the 13.7% headline vacancy rate. Absorbable supply for an incoming employer is thin, and the gap between the two is the redevelopment and conversion opportunity.
- Affordable rent tiers: 4 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $92,167 can pay without cost burden (~$2,304/mo), and 24.8% 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
7,153 up from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 26 min below national avg
0.0 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
5.6%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
82.4%
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 (8,405)
down from 2019 vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
15.6% down from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
87.3% down from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in North Slope Borough
1 institution in North Slope Borough reporting credentials to College Scorecard
Credentials awarded in North Slope Borough
52/yr
52/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
20.1%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 13.3% 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
28.5%
Service
16.4%
Sales & Office
12.8%
Construction / Maint.
19%
Production / Transport
23.2%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 40% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 5,717 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Healthy participation: 74.2% labor force participation reflects a steady, available local workforce.
- Talent pipeline: 1 institution in North Slope Borough awards 52 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
North Slope Borough shows strong potential for support activities for mining attraction, with a 200.61x concentration and 4,113 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 QCEW2024 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 North Slope Borough, Alaska, from federal data sources.
What is the population of North Slope Borough, Alaska?
10,810 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in North Slope Borough, Alaska?
$95,694 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for Alaska (102.4 against a national average of 100), that is $93,451 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at state level; there is no county-level figure.
What is the unemployment rate in North Slope Borough, Alaska?
3.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of North Slope Borough, Alaska?
$8.1B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).
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