City · Elkhart County, Indiana

Elkhart, Indiana

Elkhart is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, part of the Elkhart-Goshen, IN metro area. It has 53,733 residents. Elkhart, Indiana has a quality-of-life score of 23 out of 100 (low), ranking #12,002 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Indiana it ranks #296 of 353 cities and towns. It ranks best on natural hazard risk (low), average commute time (low) and drought exposure (low). It ranks worst on adult obesity (high), voter turnout (low) and child poverty rate (high).

23Low

Quality-of-life score: #12,002 of 15,651 cities and towns
Indiana: #296 of 353 in IN
Population: 53,733 (2020-2024)
Land area: 29 mi²
Density: 1,882.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 1820728

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.

Safety33#10,478/15,637
Economy20#12,562/15,631
Housing74#3,822/14,977
Health27#11,381/15,609
Healthcare29#11,070/15,650
Environment23#11,899/15,453
Education22#12,151/15,649
Infrastructure60#6,224/15,650
Community32#10,698/15,651
Leisure & amenities20#12,517/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Natural hazard risk · low0.9
100/100Indiana 24.52025Federal Emergency Management AgencyElkhart County value
Average commute time · low18.5 min
92/100Indiana 24.1 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Drought exposure · low4%
88/100Indiana 19%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAElkhart County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low7 mi
87/100Indiana 29 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauElkhart County value
Social associations · high13.8 /10k
85/100Indiana 11.8 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteElkhart County value
Job growth · high1.4%
83/100Indiana -0.1%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataElkhart County value

Weaknesses

Adult obesity · high47.6%
2/100Indiana 39.7%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Voter turnout · low51.4%
5/100Indiana 59.4%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionElkhart County value
Child poverty rate · high31.0%
6/100Indiana 15.8%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.0 µg/m³
11/100Indiana 8.8 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyElkhart County value
Poor or fair health · high26.6%
13/100Indiana 20.7%United States 19.9%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high25.3%
15/100Indiana 15.3%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Trends

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

New homes permittedImproving
2.3 /1k (2021) → 5.6 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+144%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
77.3% (2015-2019) → 90.0% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$40,750 (2015-2019) → $51,028 (2020-2024)
+25%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
76.6% (2015-2019) → 81.3% (2020-2024)
+4.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Unemployment rateImproving
7.7% (2015-2019) → 3.9% (2020-2024)
−3.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Poverty rateImproving
21.9% (2015-2019) → 18.2% (2020-2024)
−3.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Elkhart, Indiana improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 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.

Improved4

Unemployment−3.7 points7.7% → 3.9%
Broadband+13 points77.3% → 90.0%
Bachelor's++2.7 points15.0% → 17.7%
Household income+25%$40,750 → $51,028

Declined1

Price / income+0.4×2.4× → 2.7×

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Elkhart, Indiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	18.7 min2015-2019	18.5 min2020-2024	−0.3 min	Within the margin of error	51%
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.0%2015-2019	17.7%2020-2024	+2.7 points	Improved	49%
Broadband subscriptions	77.3%2015-2019	90.0%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	72%
Child poverty rate	32.4%2015-2019	31.0%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Effective property tax rate	0.92%2015-2019	0.90%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	18%
High school diploma or higher	76.6%2015-2019	81.3%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Home price to income ratio	2.4×2015-2019	2.7×2020-2024	+0.4×	Declined	56%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4262015-2019	0.4582020-2024	+0.031	Within the margin of error	26%
Median household income	$40,7502015-2019	$51,0282020-2024	+25%	Improved	45%
Poverty rate	21.9%2015-2019	18.2%2020-2024	−3.7 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Rent as share of income	29.5%2015-2019	29.4%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Rent-burdened households	49.1%2015-2019	48.5%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Unemployment rate	7.7%2015-2019	3.9%2020-2024	−3.7 points	Improved	92%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.9%2015-2019	13.8%2020-2024	−2.1 points	Within the margin of error	69%

“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 Elkhart, Indiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Elkhart, 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, Elkhart, Indiana itself moved −0.1 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

53,733 residents (±41)

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

21,552 households (±810)

Elkhart, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $25k22%4,831
$25k–50k26%5,611
$50k–75k21%4,566

Homes

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

Owners and renters

21,552 households (±810)

Elkhart, Indiana
Indiana share

Own53%11,466
Rent47%10,086

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

24,656 workers (±1,022)

Elkhart, Indiana
Indiana share

Drive alone75%18,459
Carpool18%4,451
Public transit0.6%†140

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 Elkhart-Goshen, 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 Elkhart County, the county holding most of Elkhart's residents.

Elkhart County has 5,211 employer establishments, 252 for every 10,000 residents (1.01× the US rate of 248; 1.11× Indiana's), with 136,199 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,744. The Census Bureau also counts 15,199 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 5,211; 15,199 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 252; US 248 · Indiana 226
Paid employees: 136,199
Average annual pay: $56,744; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	334	16.1	0.88×About typical	6,576	$18,280	71
Specialty trade contractors	306	14.8	0.95×About typical	2,585	$72,130	1,195
Ambulatory health care services	294	14.2	0.68×Fewer than typical	4,331	$68,819	441
Religious organizations	212	10.2	1.85×More than typical	1,489	$25,378	—
Transportation equipment manufacturing	207	10	28.8×More than typical	44,821	$60,178	20
Automotive repair and maintenance	171	8.3	1.64×More than typical	1,394	$55,385	227
Limited-service restaurants	158	7.6	0.95×About typical	3,029	$16,459	16
Construction of buildings	155	7.5	0.99×About typical	1,020	$71,038	560
Lessors of real estate	153	7.4	0.60×Fewer than typical	456	$53,822	1,439
Fabricated metal product manufacturing	150	7.2	4.53×More than typical	5,971	$54,476	53
Services to buildings and dwellings	150	7.2	1.07×About typical	872	$37,644	925
Truck transportation	142	6.9	1.36×More than typical	1,515	$63,586	760

Rank places for an industry Open Elkhart County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 207,133 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 $6.2M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Elkhart, Indiana: $115 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $6.2M; +3.1% vs FY2025
Per resident: $115; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 10%; 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$3.2M51%
Federal Acquisition Service$3M48%
National Institute of Standards and Technology$81.3K1.3%
Department of Veterans Affairs$6080.0%

Top recipients

PRIME TIME SPECIALTY VEHICLES, INC.$3M48%
ELKHART BRASS MANUFACTURING COMPANY, LLC$1.2M19%
DYNAMIC METALS, LLC$904.8K15%
TRANSHIELD, INC.$642.8K10%
JANELS INDUSTRIES INC$163.8K2.6%

Spending by fiscal year

3.5MFY2017
4.5MFY2018
4.7MFY2019
5.4MFY2020
4.8MFY2021
4.4MFY2022
4MFY2023
24.1M

Top industries (NAICS)

Motor vehicle manufacturing · 3361$3M48%
Motor vehicle parts manufacturing · 3363$1.3M21%
Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$1.2M20%
Other general purpose machinery manufacturing · 3339$239.3K3.9%
Glass and glass product manufacturing · 3272$161K2.6%
Other chemical product and preparation manufacturing · 3259$59K

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Elkhart, Indiana

8511240302!ARMOR,TRANSPARENT,V$767.5K
AVIATOR SYSTEMS INC.· Elkhart County, IN· Weapons, aircraft, ships & vehicles· Mar 12, 2025 – Oct 24, 2025· SPE7L325P3260
INVERTER, POWER, STATIC, QTY 281EA NSN: 6130-20-000-3771 MFR PART NUMBER: PROSINE 1800/24HW806-1851$452.1K
MDS POWER INC· Elkhart County, IN· Other equipment & supplies· Jul 28, 2025 – Nov 7, 2025· SPRDL125C0103
8511704507!ARMOR,TRANSPARENT,V$298.8K
JANELS INDUSTRIES INC· Elkhart County, IN· Weapons, aircraft, ships & vehicles· Oct 17, 2025 – Oct 17, 2025· SPE7L326P0425
8511272921!ARMOR,TRANSPARENT,V

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

Elkhart, Indiana's figures are part of those of Elkhart County, IN ($35.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 17% of that total.

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

See federal money in Elkhart 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.

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

House

Rudy Yakym IIIR-IN-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 0.0%

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.

Elkhart County41100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Elkhart-Goshen, IN30

Other cities and towns in Elkhart 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/1820728

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends