City · Shelby County, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, part of the Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro area. It has 618,980 residents. Memphis, Tennessee has a quality-of-life score of 4 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,045 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Tennessee it ranks #297 of 305 cities and towns. It ranks best on distance to an airport (low), drinking water violations (low) and new business applications (high). It ranks worst on violent crime rate (high), child poverty rate (high) and homicide rate (high).

4Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,045 of 15,651 cities and towns
Tennessee: #297 of 305 in TN
Population: 618,980 (2020-2024)
Land area: 290 mi²
Density: 2,136.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 4748000

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.

Safety0#15,594/15,637
Economy10#14,011/15,631
Housing17#12,491/14,977
Health6#14,670/15,609
Healthcare38#9,755/15,650
Environment5#14,672/15,453
Education17#12,939/15,649
Infrastructure42#9,151/15,650
Community16#13,199/15,651
Leisure & amenities37#9,845/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Memphis, Tennessee ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Shelby 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

Distance to an airport · low10 mi
88/100Tennessee 31 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauShelby County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Tennessee 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteShelby County value
New business applications · high18.1 /1k
84/100Tennessee 14.1 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauShelby County value
Distance to an emergency room · low3.8 mi
82/100Tennessee 6.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesShelby County value
Average commute time · low21.1 min
81/100Tennessee 25.7 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Average weekly wage · high$1,425
77/100Tennessee $1,354United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsShelby County value

Weaknesses

Violent crime rate · high1,326 /100k
0/100Tennessee 492 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationShelby County value
Child poverty rate · high35.7%
1/100Tennessee 18.4%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Homicide rate · high20.9 /100k
1/100Tennessee 7.1 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataShelby County value
Property crime rate · high3,784 /100k
1/100Tennessee 1,637 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationShelby County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.522
2/100Tennessee 0.476United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Firearm deaths · high28.8 /100k
3/100Tennessee 18.9 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataShelby County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
651,932 (2015-2019) → 618,980 (2020-2024)
−5.1%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
69.5% (2015-2019) → 87.5% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.5× (2015-2019) → 3.3× (2020-2024)
+32%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Child poverty rateImproving
40.8% (2015-2019) → 35.7% (2020-2024)
−5.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$41,228 (2015-2019) → $51,736 (2020-2024)
+25%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateImproving
25.1% (2015-2019) → 23.1% (2020-2024)
−2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Memphis, Tennessee improved on 6 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 6 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.

Improved6

Broadband+18 points69.5% → 87.5%
Property tax−0.4 points1.53% → 1.12%
Child poverty−5.1 points40.8% → 35.7%
Poverty−2 points25.1% → 23.1%
Household income+25%$41,228 → $51,736

Declined3

Price / income+0.8×2.5× → 3.3×
Uninsured+1.4 points15.5% → 16.9%
Transit use−0.7 points1.5% → 0.8%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Memphis, Tennessee between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.7 min2015-2019	21.1 min2020-2024	−0.6 min	Within the margin of error	55%
Bachelor's degree or higher	26.2%2015-2019	28.0%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Improved	42%
Broadband subscriptions	69.5%2015-2019	87.5%2020-2024	+18 points	Improved	87%
Child poverty rate	40.8%2015-2019	35.7%2020-2024	−5.1 points	Improved	69%
Effective property tax rate	1.53%2015-2019	1.12%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Improved	85%
High school diploma or higher	85.7%2015-2019	87.2%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	3.3×2020-2024	+0.8×	Declined	31%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5202015-2019	0.5222020-2024	+0.002	Within the margin of error	49%
Median household income	$41,2282015-2019	$51,7362020-2024	+25%	Improved	45%
Poverty rate	25.1%2015-2019	23.1%2020-2024	−2 points	Improved	62%
Public transit commuters	1.5%2015-2019	0.8%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Declined	20%
Rent as share of income	33.1%2015-2019	33.2%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Rent-burdened households	55.7%2015-2019	55.7%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	55%
Unemployment rate	8.7%2015-2019	8.3%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.5%2015-2019	16.9%2020-2024	+1.4 points	Declined	30%

“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 Memphis, Tennessee five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Memphis, Tennessee 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, Memphis, Tennessee itself moved +1.9 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

618,980 residents (±62)

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

253,120 households (±1,828)

Memphis, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $25k24%61,497
$25k–50k24%61,181
$50k–75k18%45,318

Homes

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

Owners and renters

253,120 households (±1,828)

Memphis, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Own45%113,608
Rent55%139,512

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−1.7 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

274,260 workers (±3,488)

Memphis, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Drive alone76%208,969
Carpool10%28,411
Public transit0.8%2,162

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 Memphis, TN-MS-AR

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 Shelby County, the county holding most of Memphis's residents.

Shelby County has 19,359 employer establishments, 211 for every 10,000 residents (0.85× the US rate of 248; 1.01× Tennessee's), with 446,048 paid employees at an average annual pay of $64,548. The Census Bureau also counts 102,747 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 19,359; 102,747 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 211; US 248 · Tennessee 210
Paid employees: 446,048
Average annual pay: $64,548; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,617	17.7	0.85×About typical	27,394	$75,803	4,710
Restaurants and other eating places	1,600	17.5	0.95×About typical	33,536	$22,540	564
Lessors of real estate	792	8.7	0.70×Fewer than typical	5,233	$69,473	6,356
Limited-service restaurants	790	8.6	1.08×About typical	16,125	$19,867	191
Specialty trade contractors	768	8.4	0.54×Fewer than typical	13,240	$70,668	4,779
Full-service restaurants	625	6.8	0.89×About typical	14,868	$26,093	217
Offices of physicians	575	6.3	0.97×About typical	11,795	$110,957	923
Religious organizations	568	6.2	1.12×About typical	7,817	$27,173	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	483	5.3	0.78×Fewer than typical	7,850	$44,765	9,701
Gasoline stations	436	4.8	1.47×More than typical	1,962	$26,115	45
Truck transportation	426	4.7	0.92×About typical	12,818	$62,388	2,584
Clothing and accessories stores	408	4.5	1.23×About typical	4,886	$22,991	1,520

Rank places for an industry Open Shelby County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 915,501 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 $432.7M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Memphis, Tennessee: $699 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $432.7M; −39% vs FY2025
Per resident: $699; US $1,994
Sole-source: 15%; US 30%
Single offer: 23%; 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

USTRANSCOM$103.7M24%
Department of Veterans Affairs$75.4M17%
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention$52.5M12%
Public Buildings Service$36.1M8.3%
Defense Logistics Agency$34.8M8.0%
Internal Revenue Service$32.5M7.5%
Department of the Army$23.2M5.4%
Federal Acquisition Service$17.4M4.0%

Top recipients

FEDERAL EXPRESS CORPORATION$110.6M26%
MCKESSON SPECIALTY DISTRIBUTION LLC$51.1M12%
ANDERCORP LLC$30.7M7.1%
INTERTRADE LIMITED$19.4M4.5%
STERLING MEDICAL ASSOCIATES, INC$13.5M3.1%

Spending by fiscal year

456.4MFY2017
568.9MFY2018
717.9MFY2019
980.3MFY2020
2BFY2021
1.3BFY2022
64.9MFY2023
56M

Top industries (NAICS)

Couriers and express delivery services · 4921$111.4M26%
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing · 3254$56.5M13%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$40.3M9.3%
Outpatient care centers · 6214$17M3.9%
Computer systems design and related services · 5415$16.1M3.7%
Scientific research and development services · 5417

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Memphis, Tennessee

CENTRALIZED VACCINE DISTRIBUTION$203.9M
MCKESSON SPECIALTY DISTRIBUTION LLC· Shelby County, TN· Professional services· Sep 27, 2023 – Jun 24, 2026· 75D30123C17978
AWARD OF THE BASE TO ST. JUDE FOR CEIRR CONTRACT 75N93021C00016. THIS CONTRACT WILL SUPPORT NIAID CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE FOR INFLUENZA RESEARCH AND RESPONSE (CEIRR).$105.7M
ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC· Shelby County, TN· Research & development· Apr 7, 2021 – Jul 27, 2026· 75N93021C00016
BENJAMIN L. HOOKS JOB CORPS CENTER WITH OUTREACH AND ADMISSIONS&CAREER TRANSITION SERVICES$62M
EDUCATION & TRAINING RESOURCES LLC· Shelby County, TN· Education & social services· Sep 30, 2020 – Jul 21, 2026· 1605JE20C0007

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 Memphis, Tennessee, so they do not add up across cities.

Memphis, Tennessee's figures are part of those of Shelby County, TN ($551.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 78% of that total.

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

See federal money in Shelby 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.

Memphis, Tennessee 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.

Shelby County24100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Memphis, TN-MS-AR15

Other cities and towns in Shelby 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/4748000

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends