City · Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana

Westlake, Louisiana

Westlake is a city in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, part of the Lake Charles, LA metro area. It has 4,743 residents. Westlake, Louisiana has a quality-of-life score of 12 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,774 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Louisiana it ranks #96 of 262 cities and towns. It ranks best on unemployment rate (low), effective property tax rate (low) and pharmacies (high). It ranks worst on broadband subscriptions (low), child poverty rate (high) and mental health care shortage (high).

12Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,774 of 15,651 cities and towns
Louisiana: #96 of 262 in LA
Population: 4,743 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 1,240.4 /mi²
FIPS code: 2280815

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.

Safety3#15,119/15,637
Economy45#8,568/15,631
Housing34#9,833/14,977
Health16#13,186/15,609
Healthcare54#7,169/15,650
Environment9#14,098/15,453
Education26#11,649/15,649
Infrastructure5#14,805/15,650
Community12#13,850/15,651
Leisure & amenities68#5,035/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Unemployment rate · low0.0%
98/100Louisiana 4.3%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Effective property tax rate · low0.42%
93/100Louisiana 0.55%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Pharmacies · high2.5 /10k
90/100Louisiana 2.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCalcasieu Parish value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low7 mi
85/100Louisiana 30 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauCalcasieu Parish value
Comfortable days · high30.6%
81/100Louisiana 29.3%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationCalcasieu Parish value
Home price to income ratio · low2.4×
81/100Louisiana 3.6×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Weaknesses

Broadband subscriptions · low75.6%
3/100Louisiana 86.6%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Child poverty rate · high20.4%
4/100Louisiana 25.0%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty
Mental health care shortage · high19.0
4/100Louisiana 15.8United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationCalcasieu Parish value
Violent crime rate · high613 /100k
4/100Louisiana 515 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationCalcasieu Parish value
Distance to an airport · high126 mi
5/100Louisiana 80 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauCalcasieu Parish value
Property crime rate · high2,486 /100k
5/100Louisiana 1,966 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationCalcasieu Parish value

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
57.5% (2015-2019) → 75.6% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
7.4 /1k (2021) → 1.7 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−77%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Median household incomeImproving
$42,156 (2015-2019) → $68,381 (2020-2024)
+62%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
51.2% (2015-2019) → 63.4% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
12.1% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
31.7% (2015-2019) → 41.7% (2020-2024)
+10 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, Westlake, Louisiana improved on 3 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++12 points12.1% → 24.1%
Household income+62%$42,156 → $68,381
Broadband+18 points57.5% → 75.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Westlake, Louisiana between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.3 min2015-2019	27.5 min2020-2024	+7.1 min	Within the margin of error	5%
Bachelor's degree or higher	12.1%2015-2019	24.1%2020-2024	+12 points	Improved	94%
Broadband subscriptions	57.5%2015-2019	75.6%2020-2024	+18 points	Improved	87%
Effective property tax rate	0.39%2015-2019	0.42%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	12%
High school diploma or higher	85.6%2015-2019	89.1%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Home price to income ratio	2.7×2015-2019	2.4×2020-2024	−0.3×	Within the margin of error	89%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4332015-2019	0.5022020-2024	+0.069	Within the margin of error	10%
Median household income	$42,1562015-2019	$68,3812020-2024	+62%	Improved	92%
Poverty rate	15.9%2015-2019	12.1%2020-2024	−3.8 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	51.2%2015-2019	63.4%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	19%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	13.3%2015-2019	6.1%2020-2024	−7.2 points	Within the margin of error	92%

“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 Westlake, Louisiana five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Westlake, 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, Westlake, Louisiana itself moved −1.8 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

4,743 residents (±31)

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

2,046 households (±226)

Westlake, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Under $25k21%†438
$25k–50k14%†289
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,046 households (±226)

Westlake, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Own75%1,542
Rent25%†504

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

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,159 workers (±403)

Westlake, Louisiana
Louisiana share

Drive alone74%1,591
Carpool22%†467
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 Lake Charles, 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 Calcasieu Parish, the county holding most of Westlake's residents.

Calcasieu Parish has 4,705 employer establishments, 230 for every 10,000 residents (0.93× the US rate of 248; 0.97× Louisiana's), with 75,412 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,686. The Census Bureau also counts 15,638 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,705; 15,638 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 230; US 248 · Louisiana 236
Paid employees: 75,412
Average annual pay: $56,686; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	411	20.1	0.96×About typical	5,339	$62,600	759
Restaurants and other eating places	337	16.5	0.90×About typical	6,296	$20,674	91
Specialty trade contractors	266	13	0.84×About typical	3,398	$57,540	1,065
Limited-service restaurants	167	8.2	1.02×About typical	3,156	$18,467	38
Lessors of real estate	160	7.8	0.63×Fewer than typical	524	$50,910	1,441
Gasoline stations	158	7.7	2.38×More than typical	1,072	$26,943	6
Religious organizations	149	7.3	1.31×More than typical	1,246	$22,679	—
Offices of physicians	137	6.7	1.03×About typical	1,666	$92,823	149
Building equipment contractors	134	6.5	1.09×About typical	1,527	$65,204	174
Legal services	131	6.4	1.19×About typical	814	$115,268	154
Offices of other health practitioners	124	6.1	1.00×About typical	1,342	$46,358	301
Full-service restaurants	118	5.8	0.75×Fewer than typical	2,761	$23,315	32

Rank places for an industry Open Calcasieu Parish

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 204,628 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 $1.2M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Westlake, Louisiana: $250 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $1.2M; −85% vs FY2025
Per resident: $250; US $1,995
Sole-source: 42%; US 30%
Single offer: 49%; 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$1.2M100.0%
U.S. Coast Guard$3180.0%

Top recipients

CALCA SOLUTIONS, LLC$684.5K58%
AIRGAS USA, LLC$499.5K42%
ENVIRONMENTAL, SAFETY & HEALTH CONSULTING SERVICES, INC.$3180.0%

Spending by fiscal year

13KFY2017
151KFY2018
220.5KFY2019
162.8KFY2020
194KFY2021
46.7KFY2022
-42.5KFY2023
9KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Basic chemical manufacturing · 3251$1.2M100.0%
Remediation and other waste management services · 5629$3180.0%

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

Westlake, Louisiana's figures are part of those of Calcasieu Parish, LA ($13M in FY2026), never added to them: 9.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Calcasieu 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.

Westlake, Louisiana is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Calcasieu Parish27100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Lake Charles, LA26

Other cities and towns in Calcasieu 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/2280815

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends