City · Iberia Parish, Louisiana

New Iberia, Louisiana

New Iberia is a city in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, part of the New Iberia, LA metro area. It has 27,571 residents. New Iberia, Louisiana has a quality-of-life score of 2 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,350 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Louisiana it ranks #207 of 262 cities and towns. It ranks best on distance to an Amtrak station (low), effective property tax rate (low) and grocery stores (high). It ranks worst on child poverty rate (high), mental health care shortage (high) and income inequality (Gini index) (high).

2Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,350 of 15,651 cities and towns
Louisiana: #207 of 262 in LA
Population: 27,571 (2020-2024)
Land area: 11 mi²
Density: 2,474.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 2254035

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety4#15,060/15,637
Economy5#14,859/15,631
Housing29#10,678/14,977
Health4#14,959/15,609
Healthcare26#11,606/15,650
Environment17#12,766/15,453
Education10#14,066/15,649
Infrastructure27#11,476/15,650
Community4#15,068/15,651
Leisure & amenities31#10,829/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Distance to an Amtrak station · low4 mi
98/100Louisiana 30 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauIberia Parish value
Effective property tax rate · low0.44%
92/100Louisiana 0.55%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Grocery stores · high2.7 /10k
92/100Louisiana 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsIberia Parish value
Pharmacies · high2.5 /10k
91/100Louisiana 2.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsIberia Parish value
Comfortable days · high32.7%
89/100Louisiana 29.3%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationIberia Parish value
Job growth · high2.0%
88/100Louisiana -0.5%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataIberia Parish value

Weaknesses

Child poverty rate · high40.5%
1/100Louisiana 25.0%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Mental health care shortage · high20.0
1/100Louisiana 15.8United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationIberia Parish value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.546
1/100Louisiana 0.495United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Dental care shortage · high20.0
1/100Louisiana 13.9United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationIberia Parish value
Homicide rate · high17.7 /100k
2/100Louisiana 11.8 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataIberia Parish value
Loneliness · high41.2%
2/100Louisiana 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
29,456 (2015-2019) → 27,571 (2020-2024)
−6.4%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
0.3 /1k (2021) → 0.6 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+122%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
75.0% (2015-2019) → 88.1% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
13.5% (2015-2019) → 8.5% (2020-2024)
−5 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Median household incomeImproving
$38,221 (2015-2019) → $47,087 (2020-2024)
+23%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
78.7% (2015-2019) → 82.6% (2020-2024)
+3.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

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, New Iberia, Louisiana improved on 3 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 10 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.

Improved3

Uninsured−5 points13.5% → 8.5%
Broadband+13 points75.0% → 88.1%
Household income+23%$38,221 → $47,087

Declined1

Inequality+0.0680.478 → 0.546

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of New Iberia, Louisiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.7 min2015-2019	19.7 min2020-2024	−2.9 min	Within the margin of error	79%
Bachelor's degree or higher	16.9%2015-2019	17.3%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	30%
Broadband subscriptions	75.0%2015-2019	88.1%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	73%
Child poverty rate	41.9%2015-2019	40.5%2020-2024	−1.5 points	Within the margin of error	53%
Effective property tax rate	0.38%2015-2019	0.44%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	9%
High school diploma or higher	78.7%2015-2019	82.6%2020-2024	+3.9 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Home price to income ratio	3.0×2015-2019	3.4×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	57%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4782015-2019	0.5462020-2024	+0.068	Declined	11%
Median household income	$38,2212015-2019	$47,0872020-2024	+23%	Improved	40%
Poverty rate	27.3%2015-2019	26.7%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	50%
Rent as share of income	32.2%2015-2019	30.9%2020-2024	−1.3 points	Within the margin of error	65%
Rent-burdened households	55.3%2015-2019	51.6%2020-2024	−3.7 points	Within the margin of error	68%
Unemployment rate	10.7%2015-2019	10.7%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	48%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	13.5%2015-2019	8.5%2020-2024	−5 points	Improved	87%

“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 New Iberia, Louisiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of New Iberia, 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.

For comparison, New Iberia, Louisiana itself moved +3.5 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

27,571 residents (±54)

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

11,381 households (±448)

New Iberia, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under $25k30%3,399
$25k–50k22%2,453
$50k–75k17%1,965

Homes

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

Owners and renters

11,381 households (±448)

New Iberia, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Own51%5,857
Rent49%5,524

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−4.7 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

10,144 workers (±759)

New Iberia, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Drive alone79%8,063
Carpool9.7%†979
Public transit0.5%†

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 New Iberia, 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 Iberia Parish, the county holding most of New Iberia's residents.

Iberia Parish has 1,451 employer establishments, 214 for every 10,000 residents (0.86× the US rate of 248; 0.91× Louisiana's), with 19,477 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,742. The Census Bureau also counts 6,365 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,451; 6,365 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 214; US 248 · Louisiana 236
Paid employees: 19,477
Average annual pay: $56,742; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	137	20.2	0.97×About typical	1,102	$48,125	508
Restaurants and other eating places	96	14.2	0.77×Fewer than typical	1,506	$17,919	47
Specialty trade contractors	75	11.1	0.71×Fewer than typical	869	$62,581	470
Offices of physicians	53	7.8	1.21×About typical	328	$54,399	35
Limited-service restaurants	51	7.5	0.94×About typical	934	$17,345	22
Building equipment contractors	48	7.1	1.18×About typical	679	$64,990	98
Automotive repair and maintenance	41	6.1	1.20×About typical	211	$39,578	115
Fabricated metal product manufacturing	41	6.1	3.79×More than typical	1,029	$74,838	40
Lessors of real estate	33	4.9	0.40×Fewer than typical	101	$37,911	417
Offices of other health practitioners	33	4.9	0.80×About typical	181	$31,525	67
Commercial and industrial machinery repair	32	4.7	6.94×More than typical	360	$83,211	24
Insurance agencies and brokerages	32	4.7	1.08×About typical	126	$48,341	142

Rank places for an industry Open Iberia Parish

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 67,761 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 $150.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in New Iberia, Louisiana: $5.47 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $150.8K; −28% vs FY2025
Per resident: $5.47; US $1,995
Sole-source: 16%; US 30%
Single offer: 65%; 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

Top recipients

UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA AT LAFAYETTE$99.2K66%
FREEMAN HOLDINGS OF ACADIANA LLC$25.1K17%
AGGREKO, LLC$24.7K16%
ADDITIVE INNOVATORS OF LA, L.L.C$2,2261.5%
PALFINGER MARINE USA, LLC-$4520.0%

Spending by fiscal year

90.7KFY2017
75.9KFY2018
74.9KFY2019
51.4KFY2020
60KFY2021
61.7KFY2022
141.2KFY2023
137.2K

Top industries (NAICS)

Other animal production · 1129$99.2K66%
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing · 3241$25.1K17%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$24.7K16%
Computer systems design and related services · 5415$2,2261.5%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 7, 2026, loaded Oct 7, 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 New Iberia, Louisiana, so they do not add up across cities.

New Iberia, Louisiana's figures are part of those of Iberia Parish, LA ($16.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.9% of that total.

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

See federal money in Iberia 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.

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

House

Clay HigginsR-LA-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.7%

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.

Iberia Parish6100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

New Iberia, LA7

Other cities and towns in Iberia 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
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/2254035

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends