ExecutivePulse
Official Federal Data

Marin County, California

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA · Population 257,969
10 Sources Updated September 10, 2026
$149,091 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
4.2% up from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$36.9B up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
61.1% up from the baseline named below
Bachelor's+ vs 2019
35.7% national

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)
$149,091 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$93,920 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$232,566 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$128,971 metro RPP 115.6
Poverty Rate
8.3% up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Income Comparison
Marin County$149,091
California$99,122
National$80,734
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, 115.6 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 Marin 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
65+: 23.8% (61,345 residents) 55-64: 15% (38,640 residents) 35-54: 26.3% (67,880 residents) 18-34: 15.6% (40,118 residents) Under 18: 19.4% (49,986 residents) 47 Median Age
CohortsShare of total population
Under 18 · 19.4%
18-34 · 15.6%
35-54 · 26.3%
55-64 · 15%
65+ · 23.8%
Race & Ethnicity
White67.7%
Two or More Races12.3%
Some Other Race10.7%
Asian6.2%
Black or African American2.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native0.7%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander0.2%
Hispanic or Latino(any race)19.5%
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+
92.8%
High School+
National: 89.6%
up from national +3.2 pts vs national
61.1%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
up from national +25.4 pts vs national
27.6%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
up from national +13.5 pts vs national

Employment Overview

Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
257,969
Population
133,674
Labor Force
Employed
125,528
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4.2% up from 2024 +0.3 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 1 min above national avg
27.4 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
31.5%
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.
  • Cost of living erodes income: Local prices run 15.6% above the national average, so the nominal median of $149,091 is worth $128,971 at national average prices. BEA publishes price parity at metro level, not county level.
  • Talent advantage: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment exceeds the national average by 25.4 pts, supports knowledge-economy and tech attraction.
  • Aging population: Median age of 47 is materially above the U.S. norm; succession planning and senior-services demand are real factors.

Economy & Industry

Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis

$36.9B up from 2023 +1.8% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+1.8% real (inflation-adjusted) · +3.9% 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.
115.6
Cost of Living · metro · Above Avg

Top Private-Sector Industries by Employment

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics · Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages 2024 Annual · Private sector only, with government shown below · 2025 is available but itemises 8 of the broad sectors against 10 for 2024, so the fuller year is shown
Top private-sector industries by employment in Marin County, California, with employment, share of top sectors, and average wage. Government employment is excluded and reported separately below the table.
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top 10Avg Wage
1Health Care and Social Assistance
17,484 21.5%
$83,330
2Retail Trade
13,209 16.2%
$56,176
3Accommodation and Food Services
11,417 14.0%
$38,227
4Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
8,316 10.2%
$148,183
5Construction
7,453 9.2%
$93,101
6Administrative and Support and Waste Management
6,272 7.7%
$73,926
7Other Services (except Public Administration)
6,235 7.7%
$60,333
8Manufacturing
4,081 5.0%
$181,770
9Educational Services
3,807 4.7%
$68,742
10Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation
3,087 3.8%
$44,999
Government employment · context only
15,376

Public-sector jobs are not in the table above and are not part of any share or location quotient on this page. Both are measured on the private economy only, 95,558 private jobs in 2024: every location quotient divides by that total, and the Share of Top 10 column divides by the 10 sectors listed above. Private employment is the standard basis for measuring industry concentration because government employment mostly serves the resident population rather than an outside market. Nothing on this card is expected to add up with the government figure.

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Key Takeaways
  • Largest private-sector industry: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 17,484 workers (21.5% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $83,330. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 15,376 and is counted separately.
  • Economic scale: Regional GDP of $36.9B (2024).
  • Wage stratification: Manufacturing averages $181,770 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $38,227, a 4.8x 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.

Location Quotient Analysis

Chart source: BLS QCEW · broad NAICS supersector · private sector · Location Quotient vs. national private-sector employment share. The same supersector axes appear on every profile, so the shape can be compared across counties.
Concentrated Industries
List source: BLS QCEW · 3-digit NAICS sub-sector · private sector · Location Quotient vs. national private-sector employment share.
Same source and same private-sector basis as the Top Industries table above. These sit at a finer level than the chart's supersector axes, so the two sets of values are not directly comparable. The sub-sector view surfaces specialization the supersector view masks, such as Private Households here.
Private Households
5.31x
798
Chemical Manufacturing
3.30x
2,124
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
2.85x
1,850
Furniture, Home Furnishings, and Other Retailers
2.58x
1,482
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional Orgs
2.28x
2,358
Construction of Buildings
2.26x
2,993
Food and Beverage Retailers
1.74x
4,043
Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries
1.70x
2,267
Securities, Commodity Contracts, Investments
1.69x
1,319
Educational Services
1.65x
3,807
Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar
1.61x
207
Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries
1.56x
425
Postal Service
1.50x
8

Cluster Depth

Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
13 sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Retail Trade Cluster at 23.3% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
23,041
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
5.31x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail, Highest 10 By LQ
Private Households
5.31x 798
Chemical Manufacturing
3.30x 2,124
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
2.85x 1,850
Furniture, Home Furnishings, and Other Retailers
2.58x 1,482
Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional Orgs
2.28x 2,358
Construction of Buildings
2.26x 2,993
Food and Beverage Retailers
1.74x 4,043
Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries
1.70x 2,267
Securities, Commodity Contracts, Investments
1.69x 1,319
Educational Services
1.65x 3,807
+ 3 more sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5, holding a further 640 jobs not counted in the total above. See the spider chart for the broader picture.

Attraction Opportunities

LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, screened against local siting constraints. Source: BLS QCEW
0.12x
Machinery Manufacturing
92 employed
0.13x
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing
134 employed
Energy-intensive sector in a state where industrial electricity costs 2.51x the national average.
0.15x
Miscellaneous Manufacturing
68 employed
0.19x
Crop Production
75 employed
0.20x
Printing and Related Support Activities
51 employed
0.25x
Support Activities for Transportation
147 employed
0.30x
Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
727 employed
Screened on industrial power cost, rail-truck intermodal access, land base. Industrial electricity in California costs 21.62¢/kWh against 8.62¢/kWh nationally (2025). California has 30 rail-truck intermodal terminals, the nearest 28 miles from the county. Land area 520 sq mi, larger than 38% of US counties. Sources: EIA, BTS NTAD, Census Gazetteer.
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Private Households concentrates at 5.31x the national norm, top-decile concentration, the kind of signature sector that defines a region's economic identity to site selectors.
  • Cluster depth: 13 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 36.7% of the employment across them, the largest being resident household spending. Demand reaches this base from more than one market rather than from a single one.
  • Attraction whitespace: 7 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.
Marin County's Top Sectors by Workforce Share
Each rectangle's area is proportional to that sector's share of total private-sector employment across all NAICS supersectors. Hover for exact employment.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW 2024 Annual · Private sector, NAICS supersectors

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
$1,507,300 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$2,668 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
64.7% up from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
8.1% up from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
1.7% available
for rent or sale
10.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio - Stretched
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
$2,485/mo
1 Bedroom
$2,977/mo
2 Bedroom
$3,604/mo
3 Bedroom
$4,604/mo
4 Bedroom
$4,772/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$2,182/mo, from a renter median of $87,278) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 52.9% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 29.7% pay 50% or more.
Key Takeaways
  • Stretched market: Home value to income ratio of 10.1x is well above the ~4.1x national average; attainable workforce housing may be a recruitment friction.
  • Rent affordability gap: None of the 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $87,278 can pay without cost burden (~$2,182/mo), and 52.9% of renter households are already cost-burdened, 29.7% severely so; workforce housing cost burden warrants attention.
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
146,638 down from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 1 min above national avg
27.4 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
31.5%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
81.4%
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.
Labor force participation rate: 62.3%, the labor force as a share of the population aged 16 and over (ACS B23025) 62% Participation
of population age 16 and over (214,754)
down from 2019 vs 2019

Education & Talent Pipeline

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
61.1% up from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
92.8% down from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in Marin County
2 institutions in Marin County reporting credentials to College Scorecard
Credentials awarded in Marin County
1,079/yr
Dominican University of California 636/yr
College of Marin 443/yr

Aging Workforce

Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
26.4%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 15% 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
57.9%
Service
14.2%
Sales & Office
18.1%
Construction / Maint.
5.2%
Production / Transport
4.6%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 60% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 125,528 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
  • Succession risk is real: 26.4% of working-age residents are 55-64. Plan for retirements over the next decade and pair attraction strategy with talent retention.
  • Healthy participation: 62.3% labor force participation reflects a steady, available local workforce.
  • Talent pipeline: 2 institutions in Marin County award 1,079 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

Marin County shows strong potential for private households attraction, with a 5.31x concentration and 798 jobs in this sub-sector. It ranks in the top decile nationally. Near-term succession risk is elevated, with 26.4% of the working-age population within 10 years of retirement age.

The concentrated base spans private households, chemical manufacturing, and publishing industries and telecommunications, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 36.7% of the employment across them, the largest being resident household spending. Supply-chain recruitment has more than one demand base to work from.

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 Marin County, California, from federal data sources.

What is the population of Marin County, California?

257,969 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).

What is the median household income in Marin County, California?

$149,091 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA (115.6 against a national average of 100), that is $128,971 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at metro level; there is no county-level figure.

What is the unemployment rate in Marin County, California?

4.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).

What is the GDP of Marin County, California?

$36.9B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).