Scores by category

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

Safety23#12,104/15,637
Economy38#9,695/15,631
Housing89#1,664/14,977
Health35#10,103/15,609
Healthcare46#8,507/15,650
Environment9#14,089/15,453
Education56#6,950/15,649
Infrastructure74#4,049/15,650
Community73#4,255/15,651
Leisure & amenities17#12,986/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Time spent in the emergency room · low101 min
96/100Indiana 148 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesGibson County value
Mammography screening · high56.0%
94/100Indiana 49.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGibson County value
Rent-burdened households · low23.0%
93/100Indiana 48.1%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Social associations · high14.6 /10k
90/100Indiana 11.8 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGibson County value
Average commute time · low17.2 min
90/100Indiana 24.1 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Public libraries · high1.5 /10k
87/100Indiana 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesGibson County value

Weaknesses

Suicide rate · high30.4 /100k
3/100Indiana 16.1 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataGibson County value
New business applications · low7.6 /1k
5/100Indiana 12.9 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauGibson County value
Comfortable days · low22.5%
5/100Indiana 24.0%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationGibson County value
Mental health providers · low52 /100k
6/100Indiana 226 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGibson County value
Distance to an airport · high99 mi
10/100Indiana 38 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauGibson County value
Gyms and fitness centers · low0.3 /10k
10/100Indiana 1.1 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGibson County value

Trends

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

Rent-burdened householdsImproving
39.5% (2015-2019) → 23.0% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
82.2% (2015-2019) → 95.4% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.1× (2015-2019) → 3.3× (2020-2024)
+60%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Poverty rateWorsening
8.0% (2015-2019) → 17.2% (2020-2024)
+9.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
16.2% (2015-2019) → 24.2% (2020-2024)
+8 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
27.2% (2015-2019) → 21.3% (2020-2024)
−5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Fort Branch, Indiana improved on 1 of 11 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.

Improved1

Broadband+13 points82.2% → 95.4%

Declined1

Price / income+1.3×2.1× → 3.3×

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Fort Branch, Indiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	18.5 min2015-2019	17.2 min2020-2024	−1.3 min	Within the margin of error	63%
Bachelor's degree or higher	16.2%2015-2019	24.2%2020-2024	+8 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Broadband subscriptions	82.2%2015-2019	95.4%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	74%
Effective property tax rate	0.75%2015-2019	0.71%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	22%
High school diploma or higher	96.4%2015-2019	93.6%2020-2024	−2.8 points	Within the margin of error	11%
Home price to income ratio	2.1×2015-2019	3.3×2020-2024	+1.3×	Declined	14%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3392015-2019	0.3862020-2024	+0.046	Within the margin of error	18%
Median household income	$54,5832015-2019	$58,7072020-2024	+7.6%	Within the margin of error	14%
Poverty rate	8.0%2015-2019	17.2%2020-2024	+9.2 points	Within the margin of error	5%
Rent as share of income	27.2%2015-2019	21.3%2020-2024	−5.9 points	Within the margin of error	85%
Rent-burdened households	39.5%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	−16 points	Within the margin of error	91%

“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 Fort Branch, Indiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Fort Branch, 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, Fort Branch, Indiana 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

3,021 residents (±369)

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 women (−5.6 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

3,021 residents (±369)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

White85%2,574
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino0.0%†1

Education

2,156 residents (±245)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

No high school diploma6.4%†139
High school or GED37%†800
Some college25%†

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

1,486 households (±165)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $25k19%†275
$25k–50k21%†316
$50k–75k18%†270
$75k–100k10%†155
$100k–150k24%†362
$150k–200k6.1%†90
$200k or more1.2%†18

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 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

1,486 households (±165)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Own69%1,021
Rent31%465

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

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

Rent paid

465 households (±126)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $75026%†120
$750–1,00031%†146
$1,000–1,50035%†161

Home values

1,021 homes (±165)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Under $150k26%†268
$150k–250k56%567
$250k–400k14%†142

Age of homes

1,611 homes (±175)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

2010 or later10%†168
2000–20095.2%†83
1980–199927%†437

Size of homes

1,611 homes (±175)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Studio5.1%†82
1 bedroom3.8%†62
2 bedrooms33%†525

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

1,726 workers (±299)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Drive alone76%1,309
Carpool17%†292
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.1%†1
Bike0.0%0
Work from home7.2%†124
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (−10.9 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

1,602 workers (±256)

Fort Branch, Indiana
Indiana share

Under 15 min54%866
15–29 min26%†422
30–44 min13%†214

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

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 Gibson County, the county holding most of Fort Branch's residents.

Gibson County has 728 employer establishments, 221 for every 10,000 residents (0.89× the US rate of 248; 0.98× Indiana's), with 20,517 paid employees at an average annual pay of $61,433. The Census Bureau also counts 1,797 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 728; 1,797 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 221; US 248 · Indiana 226
Paid employees: 20,517
Average annual pay: $61,433; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	58	17.6	0.85×About typical	374	$65,826	41
Restaurants and other eating places	55	16.7	0.91×About typical	928	$15,652	7
Specialty trade contractors	44	13.4	0.86×About typical	274	$55,774	122
Religious organizations	40	12.2	2.19×More than typical	164	$20,506	—
Full-service restaurants	27	8.2	1.07×About typical	464	$14,558	3
Automotive repair and maintenance	24	7.3	1.45×More than typical	153	$41,745	39
Truck transportation	24	7.3	1.44×More than typical	359	$69,897	34
Services to buildings and dwellings	23	7	1.04×About typical	175	$37,360	152
Offices of physicians	22	6.7	1.03×About typical	143	$92,217	6
Gasoline stations	21	6.4	1.97×More than typical	314	$29,519	—
Limited-service restaurants	20	6.1	0.76×Fewer than typical	422	$16,491	4
Construction of buildings	17	5.2	0.68×Fewer than typical	58	$73,000	59

Rank places for an industry Open Gibson County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 32,901 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 $3,671 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Fort Branch, Indiana: $1.22 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $3,671; +996% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1.22; US $1,994
Sole-source: 100%; 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

Department of the Navy$3,671100%

Top recipients

AMAROK LLC$3,671100%

Spending by fiscal year

6.1KFY2019
1.5KFY2020
0FY2021
4.5KFY2024
334.9FY2025
3.7KFY2026

What was bought

Weapons, aircraft, ships & vehicles$3,671100%

Top industries (NAICS)

Other chemical product and preparation manufacturing · 3259$3,671100%

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 Fort Branch, Indiana, so they do not add up across cities.

Fort Branch, Indiana's figures are part of those of Gibson County, IN ($1.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.2% of that total.

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

See federal money in Gibson 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.

Fort Branch, 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.

Gibson County63100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Gibson 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
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/1824250