Official Federal Data
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ · Population 378,792
10 Sources
Updated September 10, 2026
$80,079 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
4.6% up from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$31.7B up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
34.2% 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)
$80,079 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$43,088 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$110,753 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$80,079 metro RPP 100.0
Poverty Rate
11.6% down from 2019 vs 2019
Median Income Comparison
Lehigh County$80,079
Pennsylvania$77,971
National$80,734
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ, 100.0 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 Lehigh 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 · 22.3%
18-34 · 21.8%
35-54 · 25.3%
55-64 · 12.8%
65+ · 17.7%
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+
90.5%
High School+
National: 89.6%
up from national +0.9 pts vs national
34.2%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
down from national 1.5 pts vs national
13.2%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
down from national 0.9 pts vs national
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
378,792
Population
197,194
Labor Force
Employed
185,591
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
4.6% up from 2024 +0.5 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 2 min below national avg
24.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14%
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 near the national median: Median household income tracks the national median, indicating a broad-based consumer market.
- Broadly in line with U.S. norms across income, poverty, and education.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
$31.7B up from 2023 +1.4% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+1.4% real (inflation-adjusted)
·
+4.4% 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.
100.0
Cost of Living · metro
Key Takeaways
- Largest private-sector industry: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 51,807 workers (32.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $78,612. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 17,804 and is counted separately.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $31.7B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Management of Companies and Enterprises averages $164,863 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $25,676, a 6.4x 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
7 sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Health Care & Social Assistance Cluster at 46.1% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
44,121
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
4.56x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail
Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing
4.56x 2,090
Warehousing and Storage
3.68x 9,774
Hospitals
2.61x 20,352
Miscellaneous Manufacturing
2.18x 1,863
Management of Companies and Enterprises
1.94x 7,069
Telecommunications
1.76x 1,458
Plastics and Rubber Products Manufacturing
1.55x 1,515
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, screened against local siting constraints. Source: BLS QCEW
0.16x
Crop Production
118 employed
Land-extensive sector in a county with less land area than 84% of US counties.
0.16x
Computing Infrastructure Providers and Data Processing
109 employed
0.23x
Publishing Industries and Telecommunications
284 employed
0.32x
Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction
526 employed
0.37x
Air Transportation
295 employed
0.40x
Accommodation
1,085 employed
0.47x
Textile Product Mills
61 employed
Screened on industrial power cost, rail-truck intermodal access, land base.
Industrial electricity in Pennsylvania costs 9.36¢/kWh against 8.62¢/kWh nationally (2025).
Pennsylvania has 10 rail-truck intermodal terminals, the nearest 14 miles from the county.
Land area 345 sq mi, larger than 16% of US counties.
Sources: EIA, BTS NTAD, Census Gazetteer.
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing concentrates at 4.56x the national norm, strong concentration that anchors the local economy and supports supply-chain attraction strategy.
- Cluster depth: 7 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 46.1% of the employment across them, the largest being health care economy. 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.
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
$300,400 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,383 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
65.6% up from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
4.5% down from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
1.5% available
for rent or sale
for rent or sale
3.8x
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
$1,130/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,341/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,634/mo
3 Bedroom
$2,087/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,195/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$1,200/mo, from a renter median of $48,020) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 52% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 26.6% pay 50% or more.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 3.8x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- Affordable rent tiers: 1 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $48,020 can pay without cost burden (~$1,200/mo), and 52% 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
227,286 up from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 2 min below national avg
24.9 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
83.6%
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 (304,357)
unchanged from 2019 vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
34.2% up from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
90.5% up from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in Lehigh County
Largest 6 of 13 by credentials awarded, in Lehigh County
Credentials awarded in Lehigh County
3,545/yr
1,010/yr
953/yr
639/yr
462/yr
256/yr
225/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
21.4%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 12.8% 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
39.3%
Service
15.3%
Sales & Office
19.4%
Construction / Maint.
6.9%
Production / Transport
19.2%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 40% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 185,591 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Healthy participation: 64.8% labor force participation reflects a steady, available local workforce.
- Talent pipeline: the 6 largest of 13 institutions in Lehigh County award 3,545 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
Lehigh County shows meaningful potential for beverage and tobacco product manufacturing attraction, with a 4.56x concentration and 2,090 jobs in this sub-sector.
The concentrated base spans beverage and tobacco product manufacturing, warehousing and storage, and hospitals, and no single source of demand accounts for more than 46.1% of the employment across them, the largest being health care economy. 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 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 Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
378,792 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
$80,079 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ (100.0 against a national average of 100), that is $80,079 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at metro level; there is no county-level figure.
What is the unemployment rate in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
4.6% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania?
$31.7B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).
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