City · District of Columbia, District of Columbia

Washington, District of Columbia

Washington is a city in District of Columbia, District of Columbia, part of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area. It has 681,294 residents. Washington, District of Columbia has a quality-of-life score of 77 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,668 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within District of Columbia it ranks #1 of 1 cities and towns. It ranks best on distance to an airport (low), natural hazard risk (low) and access to exercise opportunities (high). It ranks worst on time spent in the emergency room (high), property crime rate (high) and violent crime rate (high).

77High

Quality-of-life score: #3,668 of 15,651 cities and towns
District of Columbia: #1 of 1 in DC
Population: 681,294 (2020-2024)
Land area: 61 mi²
Density: 11,145.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 1150000

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety7#14,612/15,637
Economy42#9,121/15,631
Housing65#5,280/14,977
Health76#3,809/15,609
Healthcare87#2,036/15,650
Environment61#6,082/15,453
Education78#3,451/15,649
Infrastructure66#5,380/15,650
Community83#2,615/15,651
Leisure & amenities97#394/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Washington, District of Columbia ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “District of Columbia 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

Distance to an airport · low5 mi
100/100District of Columbia 5 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauDistrict of Columbia value
Natural hazard risk · low0.3
100/100District of Columbia 0.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyDistrict of Columbia value
Access to exercise opportunities · high100.0%
100/100District of Columbia 100.0%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDistrict of Columbia value
Social associations · high28.8 /10k
100/100District of Columbia 28.8 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDistrict of Columbia value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low3 mi
100/100District of Columbia 3 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauDistrict of Columbia value
Public transit commuters · high20.3%
100/100District of Columbia 20.3%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301

Weaknesses

Time spent in the emergency room · high345 min
0/100District of Columbia 345 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesDistrict of Columbia value
Property crime rate · high3,525 /100k
1/100District of Columbia 3,132 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationDistrict of Columbia value
Violent crime rate · high828 /100k
2/100District of Columbia 803 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationDistrict of Columbia value
Child care cost burden · high45.9%
2/100District of Columbia 45.9%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteDistrict of Columbia value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.517
2/100District of Columbia 0.517United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Job growth · low-4.5%
2/100District of Columbia -4.5%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataDistrict of Columbia value

Trends

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

Public transit commutersWorsening
34.7% (2015-2019) → 20.3% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%
New homes permittedWorsening
6.9 /1k (2021) → 2.9 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−58%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
82.6% (2015-2019) → 91.2% (2020-2024)
+8.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
58.5% (2015-2019) → 64.2% (2020-2024)
+5.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$86,420 (2015-2019) → $109,870 (2020-2024)
+27%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
90.9% (2015-2019) → 92.7% (2020-2024)
+1.7 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, Washington, District of Columbia improved on 7 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 6 moved within the margin of error and 1 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.

Improved7

Price / income−0.3×7.0× → 6.7×
Bachelor's++5.7 points58.5% → 64.2%
Unemployment−0.6 points6.9% → 6.3%
Commute−0.8 min30.8 min → 30.0 min
High school++1.7 points90.9% → 92.7%

Declined1

Transit use−14 points34.7% → 20.3%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Washington, District of Columbia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	30.8 min2015-2019	30.0 min2020-2024	−0.8 min	Improved	58%
Bachelor's degree or higher	58.5%2015-2019	64.2%2020-2024	+5.7 points	Improved	72%
Broadband subscriptions	82.6%2015-2019	91.2%2020-2024	+8.6 points	Improved	52%
Child poverty rate	24.0%2015-2019	22.8%2020-2024	−1.2 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Effective property tax rate	0.60%2015-2019	0.60%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	15%
High school diploma or higher	90.9%2015-2019	92.7%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Improved	55%
Home price to income ratio	7.0×2015-2019	6.7×2020-2024	−0.3×	Improved	88%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5272015-2019	0.5172020-2024	−0.010	Little change	60%
Median household income	$86,4202015-2019	$109,8702020-2024	+27%	Improved	49%
Poverty rate	16.2%2015-2019	15.4%2020-2024	−0.8 points	Within the margin of error	51%
Public transit commuters	34.7%2015-2019	20.3%2020-2024	−14 points	Declined	1%
Rent as share of income	28.5%2015-2019	28.6%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Rent-burdened households	46.2%2015-2019	46.6%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Unemployment rate	6.9%2015-2019	6.3%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Improved	61%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.1%2015-2019	4.1%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	47%

“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 Washington, District of Columbia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Washington, District of Columbia 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, Washington, District of Columbia itself moved +0.4 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

681,294 residents

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

324,491 households (±1,816)

Washington, District of Columbia
District of Columbia share

Under $25k15%49,768
$25k–50k10%32,551
$50k–75k11%34,955

Homes

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

Owners and renters

324,491 households (±1,816)

Washington, District of Columbia
District of Columbia share

Own42%134,683
Rent58%189,808

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

373,183 workers (±3,071)

Washington, District of Columbia
District of Columbia share

Drive alone27%102,181
Carpool4.0%14,972
Public transit20%75,680

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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV

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 District of Columbia, the county holding most of Washington's residents.

District of Columbia has 23,801 employer establishments, 349 for every 10,000 residents (1.40× the US rate of 248; 1.00× District of Columbia's), with 558,653 paid employees at an average annual pay of $101,634. The Census Bureau also counts 65,195 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 23,801; 65,195 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 349; US 248 · District of Columbia 349
Paid employees: 558,653
Average annual pay: $101,634; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	2,110	30.9	1.68×More than typical	46,896	$34,364	366
Management, scientific and technical consulting	1,554	22.8	3.39×More than typical	31,528	$148,322	7,124
Lessors of real estate	1,406	20.6	1.67×More than typical	10,542	$103,912	5,908
Ambulatory health care services	1,303	19.1	0.92×About typical	19,835	$76,548	3,184
Legal services	1,270	18.6	3.46×More than typical	31,599	$231,941	1,495
Full-service restaurants	974	14.3	1.86×More than typical	29,842	$38,070	160
Limited-service restaurants	851	12.5	1.55×More than typical	12,775	$28,292	143
Computer systems design and related services	839	12.3	2.84×More than typical	15,625	$117,080	942
Schools, colleges and instruction	661	9.7	2.76×More than typical	60,281	$65,500	3,405
Advertising, public relations and related services	634	9.3	8.05×More than typical	8,435	$166,093	719
Other personal services	539	7.9	4.23×More than typical	3,687	$33,277	2,477
Religious organizations	485	7.1	1.28×More than typical	5,057	$48,386	—

Rank places for an industry Open District of Columbia

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 682,559 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 $30.2B of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Washington, District of Columbia: $44,295 per resident (US $2,007).

Obligations: $30.2B; −4% vs FY2025
Per resident: $44,295; US $2,007
Sole-source: 15%; US 30%
Single offer: 21%; US 8.7%

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

Top buying agencies

Federal Acquisition Service$3.4B11%
Federal Aviation Administration$2.9B9.7%
Department of the Navy$2.4B7.8%
Department of State$2B6.7%
Department of Veterans Affairs$1.4B4.8%
Department of Energy$1.4B4.6%
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement$1.1B3.8%
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources$815.9M2.7%

Top recipients

BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON INC$1.2B3.9%
DELOITTE CONSULTING LLP$1.1B3.7%
SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION$826.3M2.7%
HARRIS CORPORATION$783.7M2.6%
ACCENTURE FEDERAL SERVICES LLC$702.1M2.3%

Spending by fiscal year

22.8BFY2017
23.4BFY2018
23.8BFY2019
27.3BFY2020
31BFY2021
31.6BFY2022
33.9BFY2023
36B

Top industries (NAICS)

Computer systems design and related services · 5415$9.6B32%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$3.9B13%
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416$2.9B9.6%
Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419$1.7B5.7%
Scientific research and development services · 5417$1.5B5.1%

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Washington, District of Columbia

THE PURPOSE OF THIS DELIVERY ORDER AWARD IS TO ADD FUNDING FOR FTI TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES.$2.3B
HARRIS CORPORATION· District of Columbia, DC· IT & telecom· Jul 1, 2021 – Sep 22, 2026· 693KA821F00222
TIVOD SUPPORTS THE ORIGINATION, DISBURSEMENT, AND REPORTING OF TITLE IV FEDERAL STUDENT AID PROGRAMS, INCLUDING - BUT NOT LIMITED TO - DIRECT LOANS, PELL GRANTS, AND THE TEACHER EDUCATION ASSISTANCE FOR COLLEGE AND HIGHER EDUCATION GRANTS. THE TITLE IV SOLUTION SHALL ALSO PROVIDE ONGOING SUPPORT FOR THE DISCONTINUED TITLE IV FEDERAL STUDENT AID PROGRAMS, INCLUDING - BUT NOT LIMITED TO - ACADEMIC COMPETITIVENESS GRANTS AND NATIONAL SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS ACCESS TO RETAIN TALENT GRANTS.$1.5B
ACCENTURE FEDERAL SERVICES LLC· District of Columbia, DC· Professional services· Nov 30, 2016 – Jan 15, 2026· EDFSA15C0006
THE CONTRACTOR MUST FURNISH ALL PROFESSIONAL, TECHNICAL AND SUPPORT LABOR, MATERIAL, SUPPLIES, MANAGEMENT SERVICES, DATA, AND FACILITIES REQUIRED TO ACCOMPLISH THE WORK TO BE ORDERED UNDER TECHNICAL F$1.5B

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 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 Washington, District of Columbia, so they do not add up across cities.

Washington, District of Columbia's figures are part of those of District of Columbia, DC ($30.2B in FY2026), never added to them: 100% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Washington is mostly in District of Columbia.

See federal money in District of Columbia

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.

Washington, District of Columbia is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Eleanor Holmes NortonD-DC · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 8.2%

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

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

District of Columbia74100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV86

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/1150000

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Improved7

Declined1

Cities and towns like Washington, District of Columbia five years ago that improved

Who lives here

Age and sex

Income

Household income

Homes

Owners and renters

Getting to work

How people get to work

Jobs and pay

Local businesses

Federal contracts performed here

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Washington, District of Columbia

How this is estimated

Representation in Congress

House

County

Metro area

Similar cities and towns

Data and sources

Improved7

Declined1

Age and sex

Household income

Owners and renters

How people get to work

Race and Hispanic origin

Education

Rent paid

Home values

Age of homes

Size of homes

Time to get to work

House

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Washington, District of Columbia

How this is estimated

What was bought