City · Clay County, Indiana

Brazil, Indiana

Brazil is a city in Clay County, Indiana, part of the Terre Haute, IN metro area. It has 7,831 residents. Brazil, Indiana has a quality-of-life score of 21 out of 100 (low), ranking #12,371 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Indiana it ranks #306 of 353 cities and towns. It ranks best on math scores (high), homicide rate (low) and effective property tax rate (low). It ranks worst on average weekly wage (low), comfortable days (low) and adult obesity (high).

21Low

Quality-of-life score: #12,371 of 15,651 cities and towns
Indiana: #306 of 353 in IN
Population: 7,831 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 2,124.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 1807174

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety71#4,561/15,637
Economy5#14,798/15,631
Housing97#422/14,977
Health10#14,094/15,609
Healthcare12#13,723/15,650
Environment18#12,608/15,453
Education51#7,613/15,649
Infrastructure7#14,620/15,650
Community29#11,069/15,651
Leisure & amenities27#11,444/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Brazil, Indiana ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Clay 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

Math scores · high3.48
95/100Indiana 3.19United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteClay County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Indiana 5.6 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataClay County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.50%
87/100Indiana 0.76%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Home price to income ratio · low2.2×
87/100Indiana 3.0×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Social associations · high14.0 /10k
87/100Indiana 11.8 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteClay County value
Rent-burdened households · low36.0%
86/100Indiana 48.1%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Weaknesses

Average weekly wage · low$890
5/100Indiana $1,251United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsClay County value
Comfortable days · low22.6%
5/100Indiana 24.0%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationClay County value
Adult obesity · high44.8%
5/100Indiana 39.7%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Dentists · low23 /100k
6/100Indiana 61 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteClay County value
Mental health providers · low53 /100k
6/100Indiana 226 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteClay County value
New business applications · low7.9 /1k
6/100Indiana 12.9 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauClay County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
8,380 (2015-2019) → 7,831 (2020-2024)
−6.6%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
1.7 /1k (2021) → 2.4 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+44%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
76.2% (2015-2019) → 83.5% (2020-2024)
+7.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Average commute timeWorsening
25.2 min (2015-2019) → 33.6 min (2020-2024)
+33%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
42.4% (2015-2019) → 36.1% (2020-2024)
−6.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
3.5% (2015-2019) → 9.7% (2020-2024)
+6.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Brazil, Indiana improved on 0 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 12 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.

Declined2

Inequality+0.1050.378 → 0.484
Uninsured+6.2 points3.5% → 9.7%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Brazil, Indiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.2 min2015-2019	33.6 min2020-2024	+8.4 min	Within the margin of error	4%
Bachelor's degree or higher	11.9%2015-2019	13.5%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Broadband subscriptions	76.2%2015-2019	83.5%2020-2024	+7.2 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Child poverty rate	29.5%2015-2019	28.8%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Within the margin of error	49%
Effective property tax rate	0.53%2015-2019	0.50%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	20%
High school diploma or higher	87.7%2015-2019	82.2%2020-2024	−5.5 points	Within the margin of error	5%
Home price to income ratio	1.9×2015-2019	2.2×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	63%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3782015-2019	0.4842020-2024	+0.105	Declined	4%
Median household income	$43,4282015-2019	$52,0552020-2024	+20%	Within the margin of error	33%
Poverty rate	19.9%2015-2019	18.6%2020-2024	−1.4 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Rent as share of income	25.0%2015-2019	25.4%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Rent-burdened households	42.4%2015-2019	36.1%2020-2024	−6.4 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Unemployment rate	5.3%2015-2019	5.9%2020-2024	+0.7 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	3.5%2015-2019	9.7%2020-2024	+6.2 points	Declined	7%

“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 Brazil, Indiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Brazil, Indiana 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, Brazil, Indiana itself moved −13.4 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

7,831 residents (±475)

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

3,319 households (±328)

Brazil, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $25k19%†618
$25k–50k29%†970
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

3,319 households (±328)

Brazil, Indiana
Indiana share

Own73%2,416
Rent27%†903

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+15.0 points).

† 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

3,317 workers (±408)

Brazil, Indiana
Indiana share

Drive alone80%2,640
Carpool16%†537
Public transit0.0%0

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 Terre Haute, IN

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 Clay County, the county holding most of Brazil's residents.

Clay County has 492 employer establishments, 186 for every 10,000 residents (0.75× the US rate of 248; 0.82× Indiana's), with 6,428 paid employees at an average annual pay of $43,356. The Census Bureau also counts 1,516 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 492; 1,516 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 186; US 248 · Indiana 226
Paid employees: 6,428
Average annual pay: $43,356; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	41	15.5	0.85×About typical	600	$16,378	3
Ambulatory health care services	38	14.4	0.69×Fewer than typical	543	$65,812	37
Specialty trade contractors	37	14	0.91×About typical	179	$48,101	145
Religious organizations	33	12.5	2.25×More than typical	153	$18,562	—
Truck transportation	27	10.2	2.02×More than typical	165	$59,636	43
Full-service restaurants	21	8	1.04×About typical	253	$14,929	—
Gasoline stations	21	8	2.45×More than typical	254	$26,484	—
Construction of buildings	20	7.6	1.00×About typical	59	$46,017	77
Limited-service restaurants	17	6.4	0.80×About typical	310	$17,968	—
Offices of other health practitioners	17	6.4	1.06×About typical	56	$43,161	19
Building equipment contractors	13	4.9	0.82×About typical	62	$45,145	24
Automotive repair and maintenance	12	4.5	0.90×About typical	33	$35,030	34

Rank places for an industry Open Clay County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 26,400 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 $4,099 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Brazil, Indiana: $0.52 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $4,099; −98% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.52; US $1,994
Sole-source: 5.2%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Defense Logistics Agency$4,099100%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

30.3KFY2017
64.7KFY2018
54.3KFY2019
72.9KFY2020
49.4KFY2021
110.5KFY2022
71KFY2023
109.9K

Top industries (NAICS)

Hardware manufacturing · 3325$3,59588%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$2,18453%
Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing · 3345$2,10651%
Spring and wire product manufacturing · 3326$1,18229%
Boiler, tank, and shipping container manufacturing · 3324$85221%
Motor vehicle parts manufacturing · 3363$722

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 Brazil, Indiana, so they do not add up across cities.

Brazil, Indiana's figures are part of those of Clay County, IN ($584K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.7% of that total.

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

See federal money in Clay 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.

Brazil, Indiana is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Mark B. MessmerR-IN-8 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.9%

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.

Clay County42100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Terre Haute, IN21

Other cities and towns in Clay 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/1807174

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends