Scores by category

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

Safety18#12,856/15,637
Economy91#1,458/15,631
Housing50#7,479/14,977
Health30#10,879/15,609
Healthcare33#10,434/15,650
Environment77#3,482/15,453
Education70#4,666/15,649
Infrastructure77#3,607/15,650
Community23#12,056/15,651
Leisure & amenities27#11,422/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Clayton, Delaware ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Kent County 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

New business applications · high127.5 /1k
100/100Delaware 56.7 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauKent County value
Broadband subscriptions · high99.2%
97/100Delaware 92.3%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Effective property tax rate · low0.35%
96/100Delaware 0.54%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Mammography screening · high55.0%
91/100Delaware 55.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteKent County value
Child poverty rate · low3.0%
91/100Delaware 14.2%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty
Unemployment rate · low1.3%
89/100Delaware 4.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty

Weaknesses

Time spent in the emergency room · high268 min
1/100Delaware 210 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesKent County value
Job growth · low-2.8%
7/100Delaware -0.3%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataKent County value
Drug overdose deaths · high31.1 /100k
8/100Delaware 26.3 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataKent County value
Hospital quality rating · low2.0
9/100Delaware 3.0United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesKent County value
Adult obesity · high42.1%
12/100Delaware 34.2%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
New homes permitted · low0.0 /1k
13/100Delaware 6.0 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data

Trends

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

PopulationRising
3,282 (2015-2019) → 4,222 (2020-2024)
+29%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
24.4 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateImproving
18.6% (2015-2019) → 3.1% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
23.6% (2015-2019) → 32.1% (2020-2024)
+8.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
91.7% (2015-2019) → 99.2% (2020-2024)
+7.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$82,500 (2015-2019) → $107,307 (2020-2024)
+30%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

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, Clayton, Delaware improved on 2 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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.

Improved2

Household income+30%$82,500 → $107,307
Broadband+7.4 points91.7% → 99.2%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Clayton, Delaware between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	31.9 min2015-2019	32.9 min2020-2024	+1.0 min	Within the margin of error	36%
Bachelor's degree or higher	23.6%2015-2019	32.1%2020-2024	+8.5 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Broadband subscriptions	91.7%2015-2019	99.2%2020-2024	+7.4 points	Improved	46%
Effective property tax rate	0.31%2015-2019	0.35%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	11%
High school diploma or higher	89.1%2015-2019	86.8%2020-2024	−2.2 points	Within the margin of error	14%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	3.4×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	53%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3452015-2019	0.3322020-2024	−0.013	Within the margin of error	63%
Median household income	$82,5002015-2019	$107,3072020-2024	+30%	Improved	56%
Poverty rate	10.3%2015-2019	5.3%2020-2024	−5 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Rent as share of income	28.0%2015-2019	29.0%2020-2024	+1 points	Within the margin of error	47%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	6.7%2015-2019	3.9%2020-2024	−2.8 points	Within the margin of error	75%

“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 Clayton, Delaware five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Clayton, Delaware 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, Clayton, Delaware itself moved +0 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

4,222 residents (±24)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 50–59 men (−5.1 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

4,222 residents (±24)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

White37%†1,576
Black46%1,943
Hispanic or Latino8.9%†374

Education

2,806 residents (±191)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

No high school diploma13%†369
High school or GED26%743
Some college23%†634

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

1,195 households (±146)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Under $25k7.7%†92
$25k–50k6.6%†79
$50k–75k14%†167
$75k–100k12%†141
$100k–150k40%†478
$150k–200k10%†125
$200k or more9.5%†113

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−8.7 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,195 households (±146)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Own90%1,070
Rent10%†125

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

93 households (±71)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,0000.0%0
$1,000–1,50035%†33

Home values

1,070 homes (±133)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Under $150k5.8%†62
$150k–250k7.9%†84
$250k–400k46%†494

Age of homes

1,195 homes (±146)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

2010 or later25%†299
2000–200948%578
1980–19996.5%†78

Size of homes

1,195 homes (±146)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms6.8%†81

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,081 workers (±245)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Drive alone68%1,423
Carpool19%†405
Public transit0.8%†17
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%†1
Work from home11%†235
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (−13.2 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,846 workers (±252)

Clayton, Delaware
Delaware share

Under 15 min12%†222
15–29 min29%†538
30–44 min33%†601

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Dover, DE

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 Kent County, the county holding most of Clayton's residents.

Kent County has 4,971 employer establishments, 261 for every 10,000 residents (1.05× the US rate of 248; 0.91× Delaware's), with 61,078 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,799. The Census Bureau also counts 19,146 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,971; 19,146 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 261; US 248 · Delaware 287
Paid employees: 61,078
Average annual pay: $57,799; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Kent County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	341	17.9	0.86×About typical	5,051	$60,281	716
Computer systems design and related services	317	16.7	3.85×More than typical	1,482	$196,317	751
Restaurants and other eating places	298	15.7	0.85×About typical	6,021	$25,429	66
Specialty trade contractors	265	13.9	0.90×About typical	1,675	$65,890	954
Management, scientific and technical consulting	197	10.4	1.54×More than typical	617	$97,365	800
Lessors of real estate	191	10	0.82×About typical	610	$55,269	2,349
Limited-service restaurants	137	7.2	0.90×About typical	2,480	$23,047	31
Full-service restaurants	134	7	0.92×About typical	3,063	$26,959	26
Services to buildings and dwellings	120	6.3	0.94×About typical	1,520	$47,563	884
Building equipment contractors	113	5.9	0.99×About typical	822	$67,348	159
Offices of other health practitioners	102	5.4	0.88×About typical	803	$47,790	296
Construction of buildings	100	5.3	0.70×Fewer than typical	327	$78,752	459

Rank places for an industry Open Kent County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 190,241 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Clayton, Delaware: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

34.3FY2018
17.2FY2019

What was bought

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 Clayton, Delaware, so they do not add up across cities.

Clayton, Delaware's figures are part of those of Kent County, DE and New Castle County, DE ($208.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Clayton is mostly in Kent County.

See federal money in Kent County

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.

Clayton, Delaware is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Sarah McBrideD-DE · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 0.6%

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.

Kent County48100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Dover, DE38

Other cities and towns in Kent County

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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/1015440