Scores by category

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

Safety54#7,189/15,637
Economy18#12,868/15,631
Housing40#8,927/14,977
Health33#10,458/15,609
Healthcare66#5,382/15,650
Environment13#13,396/15,453
Education70#4,638/15,649
Infrastructure13#13,662/15,650
Community42#9,083/15,651
Leisure & amenities72#4,347/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Child care cost burden · low18.0%
98/100Mississippi 25.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMadison County value
New business applications · high29.5 /1k
97/100Mississippi 17.8 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauMadison County value
Primary care physicians · high134 /100k
96/100Mississippi 56 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMadison County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high2.3 /10k
96/100Mississippi 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMadison County value
Pharmacies · high2.9 /10k
95/100Mississippi 2.2 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMadison County value
Math scores · high3.45
93/100Mississippi 3.11United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMadison County value

Weaknesses

Child poverty rate · high59.4%
1/100Mississippi 25.0%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Lack of reliable transportation · high22.3%
1/100Mississippi 12.4%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Poverty rate · high33.3%
1/100Mississippi 17.8%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Physical inactivity · high44.1%
1/100Mississippi 35.7%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Adult obesity · high48.5%
1/100Mississippi 42.6%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high41.1%
2/100Mississippi 23.2%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.

PopulationFalling
12,222 (2015-2019) → 10,811 (2020-2024)
−12%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateWorsening
43.1% (2015-2019) → 59.4% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
75.0% (2015-2019) → 83.3% (2020-2024)
+8.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
25.5% (2015-2019) → 33.3% (2020-2024)
+7.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
18.0% (2015-2019) → 25.5% (2020-2024)
+7.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Average commute timeWorsening
17.0 min (2015-2019) → 22.9 min (2020-2024)
+35%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

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, Canton, Mississippi improved on 1 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 12 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+8.3 points75.0% → 83.3%

Declined2

Child poverty+16 points43.1% → 59.4%
Uninsured+6.5 points15.4% → 21.9%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Canton, Mississippi between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	17.0 min2015-2019	22.9 min2020-2024	+5.9 min	Within the margin of error	7%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.0%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	+7.5 points	Within the margin of error	82%
Broadband subscriptions	75.0%2015-2019	83.3%2020-2024	+8.3 points	Improved	51%
Child poverty rate	43.1%2015-2019	59.4%2020-2024	+16 points	Declined	6%
Effective property tax rate	0.63%2015-2019	0.67%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	11%
High school diploma or higher	73.9%2015-2019	75.7%2020-2024	+1.8 points	Within the margin of error	56%
Home price to income ratio	3.5×2015-2019	2.9×2020-2024	−0.6×	Within the margin of error	95%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4742015-2019	0.4382020-2024	−0.035	Within the margin of error	77%
Median household income	$33,6342015-2019	$38,3372020-2024	+14%	Within the margin of error	22%
Poverty rate	25.5%2015-2019	33.3%2020-2024	+7.8 points	Within the margin of error	7%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	33.1%2015-2019	31.5%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Rent-burdened households	54.1%2015-2019	56.5%2020-2024	+2.4 points	Within the margin of error	47%
Unemployment rate	4.3%2015-2019	3.5%2020-2024	−0.8 points	Within the margin of error	67%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.4%2015-2019	21.9%2020-2024	+6.5 points	Declined	7%

“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 Canton, Mississippi five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Canton, Mississippi 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, Canton, Mississippi itself moved +2.5 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

10,811 residents (±46)

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: Under 10 men (−3.1 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

10,811 residents (±46)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

White20%2,118
Black75%8,061
Hispanic or Latino5.4%†583
Asian0.0%0
American Indian and Alaska Native0.0%0
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races0.5%†49

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Asian (−1.6 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 B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

7,347 residents (±503)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

No high school diploma24%1,784
High school or GED30%2,205
Some college17%1,264
Associate degree3.0%†222
Bachelor's degree10%†753
Graduate degree15%†1,119

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Graduate degree (+9.0 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 B15003View 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.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

4,811 households (±438)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Under $25k26%1,268
$25k–50k36%1,715
$50k–75k14%†664
$75k–100k9.4%†453
$100k–150k11%†551
$150k–200k1.8%†88
$200k or more1.5%†72

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

4,811 households (±438)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Own36%1,736
Rent64%3,075

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

2,937 households (±476)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Under $75026%†749
$750–1,00026%†770
$1,000–1,50047%†1,388

Home values

1,736 homes (±367)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Under $150k62%1,068
$150k–250k20%†344
$250k–400k13%†234

Age of homes

5,203 homes (±466)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

2010 or later16%†811
2000–200919%†984
1980–199915%†804

Size of homes

5,203 homes (±466)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Studio3.4%†179
1 bedroom20%†1,039
2 bedrooms27%1,387

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

4,535 workers (±606)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Drive alone73%3,309
Carpool12%†526
Public transit0.0%0
Walk1.7%†78
Bike0.0%0
Work from home9.9%†447
Other3.9%†175

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+6.9 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

4,088 workers (±633)

Canton, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Under 15 min39%1,599
15–29 min32%†1,323
30–44 min17%†678

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 Jackson, MS

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 Madison County, the county holding most of Canton's residents.

Madison County has 3,489 employer establishments, 309 for every 10,000 residents (1.24× the US rate of 248; 1.50× Mississippi's), with 55,061 paid employees at an average annual pay of $54,641. The Census Bureau also counts 14,093 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,489; 14,093 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 309; US 248 · Mississippi 205
Paid employees: 55,061
Average annual pay: $54,641; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	322	28.5	1.37×More than typical	3,557	$58,686	907
Restaurants and other eating places	270	23.9	1.30×More than typical	6,200	$19,775	71
Lessors of real estate	180	15.9	1.29×More than typical	1,009	$63,791	1,823
Specialty trade contractors	147	13	0.84×About typical	1,204	$67,502	631
Limited-service restaurants	130	11.5	1.43×More than typical	3,255	$17,054	31
Legal services	118	10.4	1.94×More than typical	873	$93,128	264
Insurance agencies and brokerages	115	10.2	2.32×More than typical	1,109	$87,838	407
Clothing and accessories stores	106	9.4	2.58×More than typical	918	$22,070	171
Offices of physicians	103	9.1	1.41×More than typical	979	$80,191	298
Services to buildings and dwellings	91	8	1.19×About typical	382	$31,534	934
Full-service restaurants	90	8	1.04×About typical	2,397	$24,089	16
Construction of buildings	89	7.9	1.04×About typical	407	$73,543	433

Rank places for an industry Open Madison County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 113,053 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 Canton, Mississippi: $572 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $6.2M; +19% vs FY2025
Per resident: $572; US $1,994
Sole-source: 3.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.1%; 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 Air Force$3M48%
Department of the Navy$2.1M35%
Defense Contract Management Agency$396.1K6.4%
Drug Enforcement Administration$367.2K5.9%
Defense Logistics Agency$84.4K1.4%
Federal Bureau of Investigation$79.6K1.3%
National Institutes of Health$59.8K1.0%
Environmental Protection Agency$47.3K0.8%

Top recipients

V2X AEROSPACE LLC$6M97%
ELECTRO NATIONAL CORP$69.1K1.1%
KEMRON ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES, INC.$60.5K1.0%
G.A. CARMICHAEL FAMILY HEALTH CENTER, INC$59.8K1.0%
VETERANS AEROSPACE LLC$16.8K0.3%

Spending by fiscal year

11.3MFY2017
12.2MFY2018
9.8MFY2019
9.4MFY2020
10.7MFY2021
7.3MFY2022
4.8MFY2023
5.1M

Top industries (NAICS)

Support activities for air transportation · 4881$5.3M85%
Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419$360.8K5.8%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$351.2K5.7%
Semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing · 3344$82.2K1.3%
Scientific research and development services · 5417$59.8K1.0%
Remediation and other waste management services · 5629

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 Canton, Mississippi, so they do not add up across cities.

Canton, Mississippi's figures are part of those of Madison County, MS ($483.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 1.3% of that total.

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

See federal money in Madison 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.

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

House

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.

Madison County74100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Jackson, MS29

Other cities and towns in Madison 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/2811100

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends