City · Madison County, Mississippi

Ridgeland, Mississippi

Ridgeland is a city in Madison County, Mississippi, part of the Jackson, MS metro area. It has 24,587 residents. Ridgeland, Mississippi has a quality-of-life score of 64 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,622 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Mississippi it ranks #3 of 194 cities and towns. It ranks best on child care cost burden (low), new business applications (high) and primary care physicians (high). It ranks worst on income inequality (Gini index) (high), homicide rate (high) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (high).

64High

Quality-of-life score: #5,622 of 15,651 cities and towns
Mississippi: #3 of 194 in MS
Population: 24,587 (2020-2024)
Land area: 26 mi²
Density: 936.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 2862520

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.

Safety54#7,189/15,637
Economy43#8,871/15,631
Housing31#10,355/14,977
Health72#4,359/15,609
Healthcare71#4,491/15,650
Environment13#13,396/15,453
Education92#1,215/15,649
Infrastructure86#2,158/15,650
Community50#7,888/15,651
Leisure & amenities72#4,347/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Ridgeland, 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

Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.505
5/100Mississippi 0.482United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Homicide rate · high10.2 /100k
8/100Mississippi 14.6 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataMadison County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.1 µg/m³
8/100Mississippi 8.5 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMadison County value
Child poverty rate · high17.8%
14/100Mississippi 25.0%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Hot days · high83 days
16/100Mississippi 77 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMadison County value
Loneliness · high35.1%
19/100Mississippi 37.2%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.

Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
44.1% (2015-2019) → 53.6% (2020-2024)
+9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Child poverty rateWorsening
9.2% (2015-2019) → 17.8% (2020-2024)
+8.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
New homes permittedImproving
1.6 /1k (2021) → 2.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+38%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.1× (2015-2019) → 4.2× (2020-2024)
+36%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
87.7% (2015-2019) → 94.5% (2020-2024)
+6.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
27.8% (2015-2019) → 32.1% (2020-2024)
+4.3 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, Ridgeland, Mississippi improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 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.

Improved2

Broadband+6.8 points87.7% → 94.5%
Household income+8.6%$60,823 → $66,038

Declined3

Child poverty+8.7 points9.2% → 17.8%
Price / income+1.1×3.1× → 4.2×
Rent / income+4.3 points27.8% → 32.1%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Ridgeland, Mississippi between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.0 min2015-2019	21.1 min2020-2024	+2.2 min	Within the margin of error	26%
Bachelor's degree or higher	51.6%2015-2019	51.7%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	28%
Broadband subscriptions	87.7%2015-2019	94.5%2020-2024	+6.8 points	Improved	43%
Child poverty rate	9.2%2015-2019	17.8%2020-2024	+8.7 points	Declined	13%
Effective property tax rate	0.68%2015-2019	0.61%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	29%
High school diploma or higher	94.1%2015-2019	94.5%2020-2024	+0.5 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Home price to income ratio	3.1×2015-2019	4.2×2020-2024	+1.1×	Declined	19%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5032015-2019	0.5052020-2024	+0.002	Within the margin of error	49%
Median household income	$60,8232015-2019	$66,0382020-2024	+8.6%	Improved	15%
Poverty rate	8.3%2015-2019	9.9%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	29%
Rent as share of income	27.8%2015-2019	32.1%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Declined	25%
Rent-burdened households	44.1%2015-2019	53.6%2020-2024	+9.4 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Unemployment rate	4.5%2015-2019	4.1%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.2%2015-2019	11.9%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	28%

“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 Ridgeland, Mississippi five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Ridgeland, 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, Ridgeland, Mississippi itself moved −9.8 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

24,587 residents (±83)

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

10,782 households (±461)

Ridgeland, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Under $25k10%1,102
$25k–50k26%2,827
$50k–75k19%2,032

Homes

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

Owners and renters

10,782 households (±461)

Ridgeland, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Own47%5,098
Rent53%5,684

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

13,724 workers (±620)

Ridgeland, Mississippi
Mississippi share

Drive alone82%11,248
Carpool7.4%1,020
Public transit0.2%†29

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 Ridgeland'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 $28.2M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Ridgeland, Mississippi: $1,145 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $28.2M; −5% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1,145; US $1,994
Sole-source: 1.8%; US 30%
Single offer: 4.4%; 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

Forest Service$25.8M92%
U.S. Cyber Command$715.7K2.5%
Internal Revenue Service$427.8K1.5%
National Park Service$348.5K1.2%
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management$254.4K0.9%
Department of Veterans Affairs$232K0.8%
Department of the Army$208K0.7%
Departmental Offices$202.4K0.7%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

17.5MFY2017
23.9MFY2018
14.1MFY2019
11.5MFY2020
1.6MFY2021
26.3MFY2022
40.9MFY2023
-5.1M

Top industries (NAICS)

Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment rental and leasing · 5324$26M92%
Computer systems design and related services · 5415$867.4K3.1%
Support activities for forestry · 1153$556.5K2.0%
Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services · 5412$505.5K1.8%
Activities related to real estate · 5313$397.3K1.4%
Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Ridgeland, Mississippi

NATIONAL AERIAL SUPERVISION MODULE (ASM) DRY LEASE AIRCRAFT$8M
TENAX AEROSPACE LLC· Madison County, MS· Facilities & utilities· Sep 28, 2023 – Sep 1, 2026· 1202SA23K9405
NATIONAL AERIAL SUPERVISION MODULE (ASM) DRY LEASE AIRCRAFT$7.8M
TENAX AEROSPACE LLC· Madison County, MS· Facilities & utilities· Sep 28, 2023 – Sep 1, 2026· 1202SA23K9403
NATIONAL AERIAL SUPERVISION MODULE (ASM) DRY LEASE AIRCRAFT$7.6M
TENAX AEROSPACE LLC· Madison County, MS· Facilities & utilities· Sep 28, 2023 – Sep 2, 2026· 1202SA23K9404
NATIONAL AERIAL SUPERVISION MODULE (ASM) DRY LEASE AIRCRAFT

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

Ridgeland, Mississippi's figures are part of those of Madison County, MS ($483.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 5.8% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Ridgeland 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.

Ridgeland, Mississippi 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.

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/2862520

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends