City · Blaine County, Idaho

Hailey, Idaho

Hailey is a city in Blaine County, Idaho, part of the Hailey, ID metro area. It has 9,665 residents. Hailey, Idaho has a quality-of-life score of 97 out of 100 (very high), ranking #518 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Idaho it ranks #3 of 101 cities and towns. It ranks best on life expectancy (high), loneliness (low) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (low). It ranks worst on distance to an Amtrak station (high), distance to an emergency room (high) and suicide rate (high).

97Very high

Quality-of-life score: #518 of 15,651 cities and towns
Idaho: #3 of 101 in ID
Population: 9,665 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 2,431.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 1634390

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.

Safety67#5,194/15,637
Economy82#2,751/15,631
Housing71#4,389/14,977
Health90#1,616/15,609
Healthcare62#5,975/15,650
Environment95#796/15,453
Education75#3,956/15,649
Infrastructure86#2,135/15,650
Community97#538/15,651
Leisure & amenities100#18/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Hailey, Idaho ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Blaine 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

Life expectancy · high85.1 yrs
100/100Idaho 78.3 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBlaine County value
Loneliness · low28.1%
100/100Idaho 29.7%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low3.3 µg/m³
100/100Idaho 8.2 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2019Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyBlaine County value
Preventable hospital stays · low751 /100k
100/100Idaho 1,575 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBlaine County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high24.7 /10k
100/100Idaho 7.2 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBlaine County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high3.1 /10k
99/100Idaho 1.6 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBlaine County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an Amtrak station · high202 mi
2/100Idaho 155 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauBlaine County value
Distance to an emergency room · high19.1 mi
3/100Idaho 8.4 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesBlaine County value
Suicide rate · high25.8 /100k
8/100Idaho 20.4 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataBlaine County value
Home price to income ratio · high7.0×
8/100Idaho 5.4×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Firearm deaths · high22.5 /100k
10/100Idaho 15.9 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataBlaine County value
Drought exposure · high82%
10/100Idaho 73%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAABlaine County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
8,408 (2015-2019) → 9,665 (2020-2024)
+15%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
53.6% (2015-2019) → 36.2% (2020-2024)
−17 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
14.2 /1k (2021) → 2.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−85%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Median household incomeImproving
$51,158 (2015-2019) → $90,760 (2020-2024)
+77%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
28.2% (2015-2019) → 39.0% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
86.3% (2015-2019) → 94.7% (2020-2024)
+8.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

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, Hailey, Idaho improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 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.

Improved2

Household income+77%$51,158 → $90,760
Bachelor's++11 points28.2% → 39.0%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Hailey, Idaho between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.3 min2015-2019	18.9 min2020-2024	−4.4 min	Within the margin of error	87%
Bachelor's degree or higher	28.2%2015-2019	39.0%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	92%
Broadband subscriptions	86.3%2015-2019	94.7%2020-2024	+8.4 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Child poverty rate	21.0%2015-2019	15.6%2020-2024	−5.4 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Effective property tax rate	0.54%2015-2019	0.32%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Little change	63%
High school diploma or higher	83.1%2015-2019	87.5%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Home price to income ratio	7.2×2015-2019	7.0×2020-2024	−0.2×	Within the margin of error	86%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4002015-2019	0.3862020-2024	−0.014	Within the margin of error	63%
Median household income	$51,1582015-2019	$90,7602020-2024	+77%	Improved	96%
Poverty rate	12.2%2015-2019	7.4%2020-2024	−4.8 points	Within the margin of error	79%
Rent as share of income	31.2%2015-2019	25.1%2020-2024	−6.1 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Rent-burdened households	53.6%2015-2019	36.2%2020-2024	−17 points	Within the margin of error	91%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	17.4%2015-2019	13.1%2020-2024	−4.3 points	Within the margin of error	84%

“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 Hailey, Idaho five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Hailey, Idaho 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, Hailey, Idaho itself moved +19 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

9,665 residents (±18)

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

3,751 households (±291)

Hailey, Idaho
Idaho share

Under $25k7.2%†271
$25k–50k24%†909
$50k–75k11%

Homes

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

Owners and renters

3,751 households (±291)

Hailey, Idaho
Idaho share

Own71%2,662
Rent29%1,089

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

5,682 workers (±462)

Hailey, Idaho
Idaho share

Drive alone67%3,818
Carpool13%†720
Public transit2.6%†147

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 Hailey, ID

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 Blaine County, the county holding most of Hailey's residents.

Blaine County has 1,688 employer establishments, 665 for every 10,000 residents (2.68× the US rate of 248; 2.25× Idaho's), with 13,208 paid employees at an average annual pay of $54,743. The Census Bureau also counts 3,890 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,688; 3,890 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 665; US 248 · Idaho 295
Paid employees: 13,208
Average annual pay: $54,743; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	230	90.6	5.85×More than typical	1,630	$62,740	216
Lessors of real estate	156	61.4	4.99×More than typical	351	$79,709	811
Construction of buildings	126	49.6	6.56×More than typical	826	$67,827	124
Services to buildings and dwellings	100	39.4	5.84×More than typical	617	$60,230	205
Restaurants and other eating places	98	38.6	2.10×More than typical	1,470	$26,649	8
Building finishing contractors	95	37.4	9.84×More than typical	403	$60,541	87
Real estate agents and brokers	86	33.9	6.96×More than typical	82	$142,744	148
Ambulatory health care services	65	25.6	1.23×About typical	322	$72,807	157
Landscaping services	60	23.6	6.75×More than typical	530	$65,009	55
Full-service restaurants	55	21.7	2.82×More than typical	902	$28,727	—
Building equipment contractors	54	21.3	3.53×More than typical	492	$68,425	19
Architectural, engineering and related services	53	20.9	5.99×More than typical	411	$99,740	69

Rank places for an industry Open Blaine County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 25,392 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Blaine 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.

Hailey, Idaho is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Michael K. SimpsonR-ID-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 95%Missed 2.1%

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.

Blaine County98100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Hailey, ID98

Other cities and towns in Blaine 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/1634390

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends