Town · Hamilton County, Tennessee

Walden, Tennessee

Walden is a town in Hamilton County, Tennessee, part of the Chattanooga, TN-GA metro area. It has 1,845 residents. Walden, Tennessee has a quality-of-life score of 68 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,060 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Tennessee it ranks #11 of 305 cities and towns. It ranks best on high school diploma or higher (high), distance to an airport (low) and physical inactivity (low). It ranks worst on public libraries (low), distance to an Amtrak station (high) and homicide rate (high).

68High

Quality-of-life score: #5,060 of 15,651 cities and towns
Tennessee: #11 of 305 in TN
Population: 1,845 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 522.3 /mi²
FIPS code: 4777540

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.

Safety8#14,410/15,637
Economy81#2,919/15,631
Housing89#1,723/14,977
Health57#6,684/15,609
Healthcare66#5,335/15,650
Environment27#11,290/15,453
Education83#2,707/15,649
Infrastructure92#1,300/15,650
Community34#10,293/15,651
Leisure & amenities66#5,247/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

High school diploma or higher · high97.4%
100/100Tennessee 90.1%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Distance to an airport · low8 mi
98/100Tennessee 31 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauHamilton County value
Physical inactivity · low14.2%
97/100Tennessee 28.8%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · low7.2%
96/100Tennessee 16.7%United States 15.6%2022Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Rent as share of income · low20.6%
96/100Tennessee 29.5%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Lack of reliable transportation · low4.9%
95/100Tennessee 9.2%United States 8.3%2022Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Weaknesses

Public libraries · low0.2 /10k
9/100Tennessee 0.4 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesHamilton County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high96 mi
10/100Tennessee 93 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauHamilton County value
Homicide rate · high8.4 /100k
12/100Tennessee 7.1 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataHamilton County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.486
13/100Tennessee 0.476United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Violent crime rate · high443 /100k
13/100Tennessee 492 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationHamilton County value
Depression · high27.3%
14/100Tennessee 29.0%United States 20.7%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
1,948 (2015-2019) → 1,845 (2020-2024)
−5.3%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
39.7% (2015-2019) → 14.0% (2020-2024)
−26 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
4.7% (2015-2019) → 12.8% (2020-2024)
+8.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.1× (2015-2019) → 5.5× (2020-2024)
+33%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
91.7% (2015-2019) → 97.1% (2020-2024)
+5.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$100,750 (2015-2019) → $124,493 (2020-2024)
+24%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, Walden, Tennessee improved on 2 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 6 moved within the margin of error and 1 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

Household income+24%$100,750 → $124,493
Broadband+5.4 points91.7% → 97.1%

Declined2

Uninsured+8.1 points4.7% → 12.8%
Price / income+1.4×4.1× → 5.5×

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Walden, Tennessee between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.4 min2015-2019	25.4 min2020-2024	−0.1 min	Within the margin of error	48%
Bachelor's degree or higher	61.2%2015-2019	64.9%2020-2024	+3.7 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Broadband subscriptions	91.7%2015-2019	97.1%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Improved	34%
Effective property tax rate	0.73%2015-2019	0.50%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Little change	63%
High school diploma or higher	95.1%2015-2019	97.4%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Home price to income ratio	4.1×2015-2019	5.5×2020-2024	+1.4×	Declined	12%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4802015-2019	0.4862020-2024	+0.006	Within the margin of error	45%
Median household income	$100,7502015-2019	$124,4932020-2024	+24%	Improved	41%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	25.2%2015-2019	20.6%2020-2024	−4.6 points	Within the margin of error	81%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.7%2015-2019	12.8%2020-2024	+8.1 points	Declined	5%

“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 Walden, Tennessee five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Walden, 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, Walden, Tennessee itself moved +3.6 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

1,845 residents (±247)

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

719 households (±84)

Walden, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Under $25k4.3%†31
$25k–50k6.7%†48
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

719 households (±84)

Walden, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Own82%588
Rent18%†131

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

858 workers (±144)

Walden, Tennessee
Tennessee share

Drive alone74%636
Carpool4.5%†39
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 Chattanooga, TN-GA

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 Hamilton County, the county holding most of Walden's residents.

Hamilton County has 9,883 employer establishments, 259 for every 10,000 residents (1.04× the US rate of 248; 1.24× Tennessee's), with 205,761 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,819. The Census Bureau also counts 35,326 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 9,883; 35,326 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 259; US 248 · Tennessee 210
Paid employees: 205,761
Average annual pay: $56,819; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	901	23.6	1.13×About typical	13,953	$70,188	1,868
Restaurants and other eating places	783	20.5	1.12×About typical	18,610	$22,292	145
Specialty trade contractors	490	12.9	0.83×About typical	6,281	$72,296	2,228
Lessors of real estate	398	10.4	0.85×About typical	1,867	$70,599	3,610
Religious organizations	378	9.9	1.79×More than typical	3,706	$26,919	—
Limited-service restaurants	346	9.1	1.13×About typical	7,305	$18,776	53
Full-service restaurants	339	8.9	1.16×About typical	9,830	$25,445	59
Offices of physicians	296	7.8	1.20×About typical	6,300	$96,248	494
Offices of other health practitioners	256	6.7	1.11×About typical	1,580	$45,820	899
Construction of buildings	254	6.7	0.88×About typical	2,239	$80,534	1,306
Services to buildings and dwellings	224	5.9	0.87×About typical	4,839	$31,043	2,147
Building equipment contractors	205	5.4	0.89×About typical	3,744	$78,621	423

Rank places for an industry Open Hamilton County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 381,087 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 -$95.6K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Walden, Tennessee: -$51.84 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$95.6K; −320% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$51.84; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

BATTRA, LLC-$95.6K0.0%

Spending by fiscal year

68.7KFY2017
65.1KFY2018
48.5KFY2019
50.1KFY2020
6.6KFY2021
-350.1FY2022
70.9KFY2023
151.8KFY2024
43.5K

What was bought

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

Walden, Tennessee's figures are part of those of Hamilton County, TN ($795.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Hamilton 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.

Walden, Tennessee is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Charles J. "Chuck" FleischmannR-TN-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 0.1%

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.

Hamilton County60100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Chattanooga, TN-GA52

Other cities and towns in Hamilton 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/4777540

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends