Census-designated place · Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska

Metlakatla, Alaska

Metlakatla is a census-designated place in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska. It has 1,235 residents. Metlakatla, Alaska has a quality-of-life score of 36 out of 100 (low), ranking #9,948 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alaska it ranks #53 of 71 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), public libraries (high) and effective property tax rate (low). It ranks worst on distance to an airport (high), distance to an emergency room (high) and distance to an Amtrak station (high).

36Low

Quality-of-life score: #9,948 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alaska: #53 of 71 in AK
Population: 1,235 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 534.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 0248870

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 59 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety88#1,857/15,637
Economy32#10,688/15,631
Housing100#7/14,977
Health5#14,780/15,609
Healthcare42#9,018/15,650
Environment—
Education45#8,673/15,649
Infrastructure31#10,823/15,650
Community18#12,757/15,651
Leisure & amenities15#13,296/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Metlakatla, Alaska ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Average commute time · low6.2 min
100/100Alaska 19.4 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Public libraries · high15.7 /10k
100/100Alaska 1.1 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Effective property tax rate · low0.01%
100/100Alaska 0.94%United States 0.94%2018-2022U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090High uncertainty
Natural hazard risk · low0.4
100/100Alaska 64.12025Federal Emergency Management AgencyPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Grocery stores · high8.7 /10k
100/100Alaska 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Mental health providers · high1,131 /100k
99/100Alaska 802 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value

Weaknesses

Distance to an airport · high698 mi
0/100Alaska 131 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Distance to an emergency room · high53.1 mi
0/100Alaska 46.0 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high593 mi
1/100Alaska 1,315 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Job growth · low-5.2%
2/100Alaska -1.3%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value
Adult smoking · high25.4%
2/100Alaska 16.9%United States 16.1%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Injury deaths · high153 /100k
3/100Alaska 117 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstitutePrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,654 (2015-2019) → 1,235 (2020-2024)
−25%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.4% (2015-2019) → 85.1% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
27.3% (2015-2019) → 15.8% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Unemployment rateImproving
17.7% (2015-2019) → 7.6% (2020-2024)
−10 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
21.2% (2015-2019) → 12.3% (2020-2024)
−8.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
25.5% (2015-2019) → 16.7% (2020-2024)
−8.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Metlakatla, Alaska improved on 3 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 7 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved3

Unemployment−10 points17.7% → 7.6%
Uninsured−11 points27.3% → 15.8%
Broadband+15 points70.4% → 85.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Metlakatla, Alaska between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	9.3 min2015-2019	6.1 min2020-2024	−3.1 min	Within the margin of error	80%
Bachelor's degree or higher	10.4%2015-2019	9.3%2020-2024	−1.1 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Broadband subscriptions	70.4%2015-2019	85.1%2020-2024	+15 points	Improved	78%
High school diploma or higher	92.0%2015-2019	89.0%2020-2024	−2.9 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	2.3×2020-2024	−0.4×	Within the margin of error	92%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4032015-2019	0.3812020-2024	−0.022	Within the margin of error	69%
Median household income	$56,1882015-2019	$72,2792020-2024	+29%	Within the margin of error	52%
Rent as share of income	18.0%2015-2019	15.8%2020-2024	−2.2 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Unemployment rate	17.7%2015-2019	7.6%2020-2024	−10 points	Improved	99%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	27.3%2015-2019	15.8%2020-2024	−11 points	Improved	97%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Metlakatla, Alaska five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Metlakatla, Alaska in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Metlakatla, Alaska itself moved +2.3 points in standing on average over the same 8 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,235 residents (±183)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

455 households (±49)

Metlakatla, Alaska
Alaska share

Under $25k11%†51
$25k–50k18%†84
$50k–75k21%

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

455 households (±49)

Metlakatla, Alaska
Alaska share

Own71%323
Rent29%132

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

585 workers (±85)

Metlakatla, Alaska
Alaska share

Drive alone54%315
Carpool23%†133
Public transit0.7%†4

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, the county holding most of Metlakatla's residents.

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area has 175 employer establishments, 307 for every 10,000 residents (1.24× the US rate of 248; 1.02× Alaska's), with 991 paid employees at an average annual pay of $61,463. The Census Bureau also counts 592 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 175; 592 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 307; US 248 · Alaska 302
Paid employees: 991
Average annual pay: $61,463; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	9	15.8	0.76×Too few to compare	116	$103,466	13
Specialty trade contractors	9	15.8	1.02×Too few to compare	26	$50,808	18
Construction of buildings	8	14	1.86×Too few to compare	25	$38,680	16
RV parks and recreational camps	8	14	59.2×Too few to compare	10	$233,400	3
Banks and credit unions	7	12.3	3.80×Too few to compare	34	$37,088	—
Restaurants and other eating places	7	12.3	0.67×Too few to compare	60	$19,617	3
Traveler accommodation	7	12.3	6.80×Too few to compare	18	$112,278	20
Grocery and convenience stores	6	10.5	3.55×Too few to compare	144	$30,063	—
Outpatient care centers	6	10.5	5.72×Too few to compare	98	$109,520	—
Building equipment contractors	5	8.8	1.46×Too few to compare	19	$47,526	—
Civic and social organizations	5	8.8	12.0×Too few to compare	29	$21,138	—
Individual and family services	5	8.8	3.13×Too few to compare	52	$32,231	—

Rank places for an industry Open Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 5,703 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $139.6K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Metlakatla, Alaska: $113 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $139.6K; +1,057% vs FY2025
Per resident: $113; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 100%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Federal Aviation Administration$139.6K100%
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission$5730.4%

Top recipients

BRICE SOLUTIONS, LLC$139.6K100%
METLAKATLA INDIAN COMMUNITY-$45.700.0%

Spending by fiscal year

5.8KFY2017
356.6FY2018
605.4FY2019
98.6FY2020
2KFY2021
688.5FY2022
560.8FY2023
206.2KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Remediation and other waste management services · 5629$139.6K100%
Social advocacy organizations · 8133$5730.4%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Metlakatla, Alaska, so they do not add up across cities.

Metlakatla, Alaska's figures are part of those of Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, AK ($6.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 2.2% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Metlakatla is mostly in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area.

See federal money in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Metlakatla, Alaska is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Nicholas J. Begich IIIR-AK · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 0.9%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area25100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0248870

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends