Census-designated place · Trumbull County, Ohio

Howland Center, Ohio

Howland Center is a census-designated place in Trumbull County, Ohio, part of the Youngstown-Warren, OH metro area. It has 6,266 residents. Howland Center, Ohio has a quality-of-life score of 58 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,607 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Ohio it ranks #251 of 684 cities and towns. It ranks best on rent-burdened households (low), high school diploma or higher (high) and natural hazard risk (low). It ranks worst on child care cost burden (high), job growth (low) and drug overdose deaths (high).

58Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,607 of 15,651 cities and towns
Ohio: #251 of 684 in OH
Population: 6,266 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 1,547.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 3936557

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 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.

Safety25#11,729/15,637
Economy49#7,969/15,631
Housing98#292/14,977
Health44#8,681/15,609
Healthcare43#8,904/15,650
Environment66#5,278/15,453
Education68#5,086/15,649
Infrastructure83#2,644/15,650
Community30#10,946/15,651
Leisure & amenities35#10,122/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Howland Center, Ohio ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Trumbull 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

Rent-burdened households · low27.5%
100/100Ohio 45.9%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
High school diploma or higher · high96.7%
95/100Ohio 91.8%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Natural hazard risk · low4.0
94/100Ohio 14.52025Federal Emergency Management AgencyTrumbull County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.348
94/100Ohio 0.467United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Rent as share of income · low20.6%
94/100Ohio 28.3%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Drought exposure · low1%
92/100Ohio 11%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAATrumbull County value

Weaknesses

Child care cost burden · high54.8%
0/100Ohio 31.7%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTrumbull County value
Job growth · low-4.3%
3/100Ohio -0.2%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataTrumbull County value
Drug overdose deaths · high29.4 /100k
10/100Ohio 18.9 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataTrumbull County value
Food environment index · low6.8
12/100Ohio 7.0United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTrumbull County value
Injury deaths · high122 /100k
13/100Ohio 104 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTrumbull County value
Preventable hospital stays · high3,679 /100k
15/100Ohio 3,269 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteTrumbull County value

Trends

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

Rent-burdened householdsImproving
51.9% (2015-2019) → 27.5% (2020-2024)
−24 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Child poverty rateImproving
23.3% (2015-2019) → 8.2% (2020-2024)
−15 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
33.0% (2015-2019) → 20.6% (2020-2024)
−12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
28.7% (2015-2019) → 35.4% (2020-2024)
+6.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Income inequality (Gini index)Improving
0.470 (2015-2019) → 0.348 (2020-2024)
−26%5 yearsCensus table B19083US 0.482 → 0.483
Median household incomeImproving
$71,058 (2015-2019) → $86,135 (2020-2024)
+21%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604

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, Howland Center, Ohio improved on 4 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 7 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.

Improved4

Inequality−0.1210.470 → 0.348
Rent burden−24 points51.9% → 27.5%
Bachelor's++6.7 points28.7% → 35.4%
Household income+21%$71,058 → $86,135

Declined1

Price / income+0.4×1.9× → 2.3×

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Howland Center, Ohio between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.0 min2015-2019	20.2 min2020-2024	−0.7 min	Within the margin of error	57%
Bachelor's degree or higher	28.7%2015-2019	35.4%2020-2024	+6.7 points	Improved	78%
Broadband subscriptions	90.8%2015-2019	94.7%2020-2024	+3.9 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Effective property tax rate	1.61%2015-2019	1.44%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	51%
High school diploma or higher	93.4%2015-2019	96.7%2020-2024	+3.3 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Home price to income ratio	1.9×2015-2019	2.3×2020-2024	+0.4×	Declined	58%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4702015-2019	0.3482020-2024	−0.121	Improved	98%
Median household income	$71,0582015-2019	$86,1352020-2024	+21%	Improved	35%
Poverty rate	10.3%2015-2019	7.0%2020-2024	−3.3 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Rent as share of income	33.0%2015-2019	20.6%2020-2024	−12 points	Within the margin of error	95%
Rent-burdened households	51.9%2015-2019	27.5%2020-2024	−24 points	Improved	96%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.0%2015-2019	5.8%2020-2024	−2.3 points	Within the margin of error	71%

“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 Howland Center, Ohio five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Howland Center, Ohio 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, Howland Center, Ohio itself moved +20.1 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

6,266 residents (±849)

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

2,583 households (±281)

Howland Center, Ohio
Ohio share

Under $25k6.2%†159
$25k–50k14%†374
$50k–75k19%

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,583 households (±281)

Howland Center, Ohio
Ohio share

Own78%2,015
Rent22%†568

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

3,454 workers (±475)

Howland Center, Ohio
Ohio share

Drive alone91%3,129
Carpool4.8%†165
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 Youngstown-Warren, OH

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 Trumbull County, the county holding most of Howland Center's residents.

Trumbull County has 3,800 employer establishments, 190 for every 10,000 residents (0.77× the US rate of 248; 0.88× Ohio's), with 56,533 paid employees at an average annual pay of $48,905. The Census Bureau also counts 14,779 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,800; 14,779 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 190; US 248 · Ohio 216
Paid employees: 56,533
Average annual pay: $48,905; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	353	17.6	0.85×About typical	3,931	$56,713	646
Restaurants and other eating places	337	16.8	0.92×About typical	6,436	$18,395	73
Specialty trade contractors	254	12.7	0.82×About typical	1,885	$67,528	1,605
Limited-service restaurants	180	9	1.12×About typical	3,349	$17,628	32
Religious organizations	161	8	1.45×More than typical	918	$18,941	—
Full-service restaurants	124	6.2	0.81×About typical	2,555	$19,784	27
Lessors of real estate	118	5.9	0.48×Fewer than typical	495	$34,481	1,160
Services to buildings and dwellings	109	5.4	0.81×About typical	373	$44,110	923
Offices of other health practitioners	107	5.3	0.88×About typical	645	$37,743	232
Automotive repair and maintenance	103	5.1	1.02×About typical	593	$39,207	205
Offices of physicians	102	5.1	0.79×Fewer than typical	1,253	$82,749	88
Truck transportation	97	4.8	0.96×About typical	1,670	$70,308	347

Rank places for an industry Open Trumbull County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 200,054 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 $10.2K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Howland Center, Ohio: $1.63 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $10.2K
Per resident: $1.63; US $1,994
Sole-source: 100%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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 Veterans Affairs$10.2K100%

Top recipients

HANGER PROSTHETICS & ORTHOTICS, INC.$10.2K100%

Spending by fiscal year

19.4KFY2017
22.1KFY2018
22.4KFY2019
12.1KFY2020
10.7KFY2021
5KFY2022
10.9KFY2023
10.2KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Medical equipment and supplies manufacturing · 3391$10.2K100%

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 Howland Center, Ohio, so they do not add up across cities.

Howland Center, Ohio's figures are part of those of Trumbull County, OH ($8.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

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

See federal money in Trumbull 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.

Howland Center, Ohio is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

David P. JoyceR-OH-14 · 100% of residentsWith party 92%Missed 3.3%

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.

Trumbull County37100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Youngstown-Warren, OH36

Other cities and towns in Trumbull 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
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/3936557

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends