Official Federal Data
Paulding County, Georgia
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA · Population 178,909
9 Sources
Updated September 10, 2026
$98,031 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
3.3% up from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$5.2B up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
29.5% 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)
$98,031 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$38,871 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$113,444 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$97,933 metro RPP 100.1
Poverty Rate
6.6% down from 2019 vs 2019
Median Income Comparison
Paulding County$98,031
Georgia$77,353
National$80,734
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA, 100.1 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 Paulding 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 · 25.5%
18-34 · 21.8%
35-54 · 28.9%
55-64 · 12.1%
65+ · 11.7%
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+
92.4%
High School+
National: 89.6%
up from national +2.8 pts vs national
29.5%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
down from national 6.2 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
178,909
Population
93,774
Labor Force
Employed
89,546
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.3% up from 2024 +0.1 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 13 min above national avg
39.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.9%
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 6.2 pts, relevant for advanced-services attraction strategy.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
$5.2B up from 2023 +6.2% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+6.2% real (inflation-adjusted)
·
+9.5% 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.
100.1
Cost of Living · metro · Above Avg
Key Takeaways
- Largest private-sector industry: Retail Trade employs 5,420 workers (23.9% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $36,932. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 6,344 and is counted separately.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $5.2B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Finance and Insurance averages $79,124 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $22,479, a 3.5x 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
11 sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Retail Trade Cluster at 38.6% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
11,526
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
3.40x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail, Highest 10 By LQ
Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
3.40x 259
General Merchandise Retailers
2.99x 1,781
Waste Management and Remediation Services
2.28x 218
Specialty Trade Contractors
2.18x 2,089
Food and Beverage Retailers
2.13x 1,271
Food Services and Drinking Places
1.86x 4,185
Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers
1.70x 641
Repair and Maintenance
1.70x 457
Gasoline Stations and Fuel Dealers
1.67x 323
Health and Personal Care Retailers
1.55x 302
+ 1 more sub-sector at LQ ≥ 1.5, holding a further 214 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
0.25x
Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods
159 employed
0.29x
Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods
116 employed
Screened on industrial power cost, rail-truck intermodal access, land base.
Industrial electricity in Georgia costs 7.81¢/kWh against 8.62¢/kWh nationally (2025).
Georgia has 11 rail-truck intermodal terminals, the nearest 14 miles from the county.
Land area 312 sq mi, larger than 14% of US counties.
Sources: EIA, BTS NTAD, Census Gazetteer.
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing concentrates at 3.40x the national norm, strong concentration that anchors the local economy and supports supply-chain attraction strategy.
- Cluster depth: 11 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 42.5% 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.
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
$326,300 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,772 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
80.8% up from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
4.9% down from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
1.9% available
for rent or sale
for rent or sale
3.3x
Home Value to Income Ratio
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
$1,585/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,660/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,820/mo
3 Bedroom
$2,182/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,605/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$1,719/mo, from a renter median of $68,750) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 40.9% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 16.8% pay 50% or more.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.3x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- High home ownership: 80.8% owner-occupied; rental supply may be tight for incoming workers.
- Affordable rent tiers: 2 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $68,750 can pay without cost burden (~$1,719/mo), and 40.9% 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
112,335 up from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 13 min above national avg
39.6 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.9%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
81.1%
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 (139,190)
up from 2019 vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003
Bachelor's+
29.5% up from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
92.4% up from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in Paulding County
The IPEDS institutional directory lists no college, university, or technical school located in Paulding County. Any training pipeline serving this county runs through institutions outside it, which this page does not aggregate.
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
19.2%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 12.1% of total population, the basis used in the Demographics cohort chart.
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
39.8%
Service
13.7%
Sales & Office
22.6%
Construction / Maint.
10.8%
Production / Transport
13.1%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 40% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 89,546 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Healthy participation: 67.7% labor force participation reflects a steady, available local workforce.
- Talent pipeline: no college, university, or technical school is located in Paulding County per the IPEDS institutional directory, so any training pipeline serving it runs through institutions outside the county.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
Sample output. Pulse AI analysis draws on 9 federal data sources.
Sample AI Insight
Paulding County shows meaningful potential for nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing attraction, with a 3.40x concentration and 259 jobs in this sub-sector.
The concentrated base spans nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing, general merchandise retailers, and waste management and remediation services, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 42.5% 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
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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
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 Paulding County, Georgia, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Paulding County, Georgia?
178,909 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Paulding County, Georgia?
$98,031 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA (100.1 against a national average of 100), that is $97,933 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at metro level; there is no county-level figure.
What is the unemployment rate in Paulding County, Georgia?
3.3% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Paulding County, Georgia?
$5.2B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).
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