Census-designated place · Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska

Tok, Alaska

Tok is a census-designated place in Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska. It has 1,649 residents. Tok, Alaska has a quality-of-life score of 17 out of 100 (very low), ranking #12,954 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Alaska it ranks #69 of 71 cities and towns. It ranks best on drug overdose deaths (low), grocery stores (high) and average commute time (low). It ranks worst on distance to an emergency room (high), flu vaccinations (low) and mammography screening (low).

17Very low

Quality-of-life score: #12,954 of 15,651 cities and towns
Alaska: #69 of 71 in AK
Population: 1,649 (2020-2024)
Land area: 133 mi²
Density: 12.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 0277800

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 61 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.

Safety37#9,890/15,637
Economy41#9,198/15,631
Housing—
Health18#12,723/15,609
Healthcare17#12,924/15,650
Environment—
Education48#8,079/15,649
Infrastructure18#12,822/15,650
Community9#14,196/15,651
Leisure & amenities61#6,081/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Tok, Alaska ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Southeast Fairbanks 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

Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Alaska 40.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100k2024Centers for Disease Control and PreventionSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Grocery stores · high4.1 /10k
98/100Alaska 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Average commute time · low11.3 min
98/100Alaska 19.4 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Public libraries · high4.2 /10k
98/100Alaska 1.1 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Rent-burdened households · low8.1%
97/100Alaska 44.6%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070High uncertainty
High school diploma or higher · high95.8%
97/100Alaska 93.6%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Weaknesses

Distance to an emergency room · high198.8 mi
0/100Alaska 46.0 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Flu vaccinations · low18.0%
1/100Alaska 29.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Mammography screening · low28.0%
1/100Alaska 39.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Pharmacies · low0.0 /10k
1/100Alaska 0.6 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high1,288 mi
1/100Alaska 1,315 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value
Suicide rate · high34.5 /100k
2/100Alaska 30.4 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,289 (2015-2019) → 1,649 (2020-2024)
+28%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
24.0% (2015-2019) → 8.1% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.5× (2015-2019) → 3.5× (2020-2024)
+40%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
12.0% (2015-2019) → 5.0% (2020-2024)
−7.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Average commute timeImproving
14.4 min (2015-2019) → 11.3 min (2020-2024)
−22%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
High school diploma or higherImproving
91.4% (2015-2019) → 95.7% (2020-2024)
+4.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

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, Tok, Alaska improved on 0 of 9 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 8 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.

Improved0

No measure improved by more than its margin of error.

Declined1

Price / income+1.0×2.5× → 3.5×

All 9 measures

Change of every measure of Tok, Alaska between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	14.4 min2015-2019	11.3 min2020-2024	−3.1 min	Within the margin of error	80%
Bachelor's degree or higher	21.5%2015-2019	20.5%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Broadband subscriptions	80.4%2015-2019	84.3%2020-2024	+3.8 points	Within the margin of error	25%
High school diploma or higher	91.4%2015-2019	95.7%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	3.5×2020-2024	+1.0×	Declined	22%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4492015-2019	0.4032020-2024	−0.046	Within the margin of error	82%
Median household income	$64,3982015-2019	$64,0632020-2024	−0.5%	Within the margin of error	7%
Poverty rate	14.7%2015-2019	14.5%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	46%
Rent as share of income	18.2%2015-2019	14.5%2020-2024	−3.7 points	Within the margin of error	77%

“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 Tok, Alaska five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Tok, 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, Tok, Alaska itself moved −3.2 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

1,649 residents (±262)

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

623 households (±82)

Tok, Alaska
Alaska share

Under $25k22%†134
$25k–50k20%†125
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

623 households (±82)

Tok, Alaska
Alaska share

Own73%452
Rent27%†171

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

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

588 workers (±139)

Tok, Alaska
Alaska share

Drive alone66%†390
Carpool12%†68
Public transit

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 Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, the county holding most of Tok's residents.

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area has 172 employer establishments, 242 for every 10,000 residents (0.97× the US rate of 248; 0.80× Alaska's), with 1,738 paid employees at an average annual pay of $89,249. The Census Bureau also counts 547 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 172; 547 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 242; US 248 · Alaska 302
Paid employees: 1,738
Average annual pay: $89,249; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Southeast Fairbanks Census Area by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Gasoline stations	11	15.4	4.76×More than typical	83	$46,711	—
Traveler accommodation	11	15.4	8.56×More than typical	69	$31,159	12
Ambulatory health care services	10	14	0.67×Fewer than typical	91	$49,593	7
Restaurants and other eating places	8	11.2	0.61×Too few to compare	83	$42,627	—
Specialty trade contractors	7	9.8	0.63×Too few to compare	53	$71,170	45
Construction of buildings	6	8.4	1.11×Too few to compare	57	$110,175	41
Lessors of real estate	5	7	0.57×Too few to compare	13	$64,846	27
Amusement, gambling and recreation industries	4	5.6	2.11×Too few to compare	5	$4,800	6
Full-service restaurants	4	5.6	0.73×Too few to compare	74	$42,027	—
Grocery and convenience stores	4	5.6	1.89×Too few to compare	47	$40,447	—
Other amusement and recreation industries	4	5.6	2.32×Too few to compare	5	$4,800	5
Religious organizations	4	5.6	1.01×Too few to compare	10	$19,400	—

Rank places for an industry Open Southeast Fairbanks Census Area

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 7,121 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 $13.6M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Tok, Alaska: $8,267 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $13.6M; +4,567% vs FY2025
Per resident: $8,267; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.1%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.2%; 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

Public Buildings Service$13.6M99.6%
Bureau of Land Management$21.4K0.2%
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service$18.8K0.1%
U.S. Special Operations Command$18.1K0.1%
Departmental Offices$1490.0%

Top recipients

DAVIS CONSTRUCTORS & ENGINEERS, INC.$13.5M99%
NORTHERN MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC.$36.9K0.3%
ASRC BUILDERS-CADDELL, LLC$18.7K0.1%
TUTOR PERINI CORPORATION$18.7K0.1%
NULATO HILLS ENTERPRISES, LLC$14.2K0.1%

Spending by fiscal year

28.1KFY2017
91.3KFY2018
171.4KFY2019
116.4KFY2020
84.4KFY2021
202.3KFY2022
171.1KFY2023
80.3KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonresidential building construction · 2362$13.5M99%
Facilities support services · 5612$36.9K0.3%
Support activities for forestry · 1153$21.4K0.2%
Computer systems design and related services · 5415$12.8K0.1%
Specialized design services · 5414$8,1950.1%
Independent artists, writers, and performers · 7115$7,5880.1%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 Tok, Alaska, so they do not add up across cities.

Tok, Alaska's figures are part of those of Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK ($520.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 2.6% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Tok is mostly in Southeast Fairbanks Census Area.

See federal money in Southeast Fairbanks 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.

Tok, 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.

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area33100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Southeast Fairbanks 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/0277800

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends