Census-designated place · St. Landry Parish, Louisiana

Lawtell, Louisiana

Lawtell is a census-designated place in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, part of the Opelousas, LA metro area. It has 1,171 residents. Lawtell, Louisiana has a quality-of-life score of 1 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,462 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Louisiana it ranks #218 of 262 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), pharmacies (high) and public transit commuters (high). It ranks worst on child poverty rate (high), premature death (high) and life expectancy (low).

1Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,462 of 15,651 cities and towns
Louisiana: #218 of 262 in LA
Population: 1,171 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 282.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 2242520

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 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.

Safety3#15,196/15,637
Economy13#13,538/15,631
Housing—
Health2#15,239/15,609
Healthcare34#10,388/15,650
Environment17#12,766/15,453
Education8#14,464/15,649
Infrastructure10#14,021/15,650
Community3#15,205/15,651
Leisure & amenities40#9,437/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Lawtell, Louisiana ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “St. Landry Parish 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

Home price to income ratio · low0.5×
100/100Louisiana 3.6×United States 4.1×2019-2023U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077High uncertainty
Pharmacies · high3.2 /10k
97/100Louisiana 2.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Landry Parish value
Public transit commuters · high8.2%
96/100Louisiana 0.9%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301High uncertainty
Grocery stores · high2.7 /10k
92/100Louisiana 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSt. Landry Parish value
Time spent in the emergency room · low122 min
86/100Louisiana 135 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSt. Landry Parish value
Students per teacher · low12.1×
82/100Louisiana 13.7×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsSt. Landry Parish value

Weaknesses

Child poverty rate · high47.2%
3/100Louisiana 25.0%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty
Premature death · high15,402 /100k
3/100Louisiana 11,889 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSt. Landry Parish value
Life expectancy · low70.4 yrs
3/100Louisiana 73.8 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSt. Landry Parish value
Broadband subscriptions · low55.6%
4/100Louisiana 86.6%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Firearm deaths · high27.0 /100k
4/100Louisiana 19.9 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSt. Landry Parish value
Loneliness · high39.3%
5/100Louisiana 37.4%United States 33.2%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.

PopulationFalling
1,252 (2015-2019) → 1,171 (2020-2024)
−6.5%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
100.0% (2015-2019) → 41.8% (2020-2024)
−58 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsWorsening
75.6% (2015-2019) → 55.6% (2020-2024)
−20 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioImproving
2.2× (2015-2019) → 0.5× (2019-2023)
−78%4 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 3.9×
Child poverty rateWorsening
33.8% (2015-2019) → 47.2% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Public transit commutersImproving
0.0% (2015-2019) → 8.2% (2020-2024)
+8.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%

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, Lawtell, Louisiana improved on 0 of 3 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 3 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.

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 3 measures

Change of every measure of Lawtell, Louisiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Broadband subscriptions	75.6%2015-2019	55.6%2020-2024	−20 points	Within the margin of error	0%
High school diploma or higher	82.6%2015-2019	81.6%2020-2024	−1 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4912015-2019	0.4082020-2024	−0.083	Within the margin of error	93%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15075 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 Lawtell, Louisiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Lawtell, Louisiana 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.

No place that looked like Lawtell, Louisiana five years ago has more measures that improved than declined, with a higher standing among its peers today.

For comparison, Lawtell, Louisiana itself moved +3.5 points in standing on average over the same 3 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

1,171 residents (±548)

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: 30–39 men (−11.5 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

1,171 residents (±548)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

White58%†682
Black36%†423
Hispanic or Latino0.0%0

Education

836 residents (±359)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

No high school diploma18%†154
High school or GED57%†477
Some college3.8%†

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

581 households (±180)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under $25k48%†278
$25k–50k6.5%†38
$50k–75k21%†121
$75k–100k11%†66
$100k–150k11%†65
$150k–200k2.2%†13
$200k or more0.0%0

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

581 households (±180)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Own84%†490
Rent16%†91

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 B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

91 households (±91)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under $75052%†47
$750–1,0008.8%†8
$1,000–1,50040%†36

Home values

490 homes (±170)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under $150k88%†432
$150k–250k12%†58
$250k–400k0.0%0

Age of homes

581 homes (±180)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

2010 or later0.0%0
2000–200918%†105
1980–199942%†246

Size of homes

581 homes (±180)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Studio6.5%†38
1 bedroom3.3%†19
2 bedrooms20%†117

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

402 workers (±267)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Drive alone60%†241
Carpool22%†90
Public transit8.2%†33
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home0.0%0
Other9.5%†38

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 B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

402 workers (±267)

Lawtell, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under 15 min31%†125
15–29 min40%†162
30–44 min18%†71

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

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 Opelousas, LA

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 St. Landry Parish, the county holding most of Lawtell's residents.

St. Landry Parish has 1,559 employer establishments, 191 for every 10,000 residents (0.77× the US rate of 248; 0.81× Louisiana's), with 21,089 paid employees at an average annual pay of $44,554. The Census Bureau also counts 7,026 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,559; 7,026 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 191; US 248 · Louisiana 236
Paid employees: 21,089
Average annual pay: $44,554; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of St. Landry Parish by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	197	24.2	1.16×About typical	2,218	$45,908	492
Specialty trade contractors	96	11.8	0.76×Fewer than typical	588	$53,352	536
Restaurants and other eating places	83	10.2	0.56×Fewer than typical	1,449	$17,669	44
Offices of physicians	69	8.5	1.31×More than typical	766	$61,385	56
Religious organizations	51	6.3	1.13×About typical	382	$21,152	—
Offices of other health practitioners	50	6.1	1.01×About typical	316	$40,541	102
Building equipment contractors	48	5.9	0.98×About typical	276	$53,141	92
Limited-service restaurants	48	5.9	0.74×Fewer than typical	983	$17,254	13
Legal services	46	5.6	1.05×About typical	217	$59,493	51
Gasoline stations	43	5.3	1.63×More than typical	420	$23,600	7
Lessors of real estate	43	5.3	0.43×Fewer than typical	96	$38,792	397
General merchandise stores	40	4.9	2.78×More than typical	899	$28,581	50

Rank places for an industry Open St. Landry Parish

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 81,423 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Lawtell, Louisiana: $0 per resident (US $2,007).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $2,007
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

1KFY2017
4.5KFY2018
2.3KFY2019
517.5FY2020
362.4FY2021
580.7FY2022
159.2KFY2023
3.3KFY2024
21.6KFY2025

What was bought

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 Lawtell, Louisiana, so they do not add up across cities.

Lawtell, Louisiana's figures are part of those of St. Landry Parish, LA ($3.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Lawtell is mostly in St. Landry Parish.

See federal money in St. Landry Parish

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.

Lawtell, Louisiana is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Cleo FieldsD-LA-6 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 3.0%

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.

St. Landry Parish3100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Opelousas, LA2

Other cities and towns in St. Landry Parish

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/2242520