City · Whitman County, Washington

Colfax, Washington

Colfax is a city in Whitman County, Washington, part of the Pullman, WA metro area. It has 2,708 residents. Colfax, Washington has a quality-of-life score of 55 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,992 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Washington it ranks #217 of 395 cities and towns. It ranks best on median Air Quality Index (low), public libraries (high) and public EV charging ports (high). It ranks worst on drought exposure (high), dental care shortage (high) and child care cost burden (high).

55Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,992 of 15,651 cities and towns
Washington: #217 of 395 in WA
Population: 2,708 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 715.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 5313785

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.

Safety70#4,706/15,637
Economy49#7,993/15,631
Housing28#10,852/14,977
Health64#5,669/15,609
Healthcare42#9,029/15,650
Environment62#5,838/15,453
Education87#1,968/15,649
Infrastructure54#7,257/15,650
Community33#10,466/15,651
Leisure & amenities40#9,431/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Colfax, Washington ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Whitman 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

Median Air Quality Index · low23
97/100Washington 382025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyWhitman County value
Public libraries · high3.1 /10k
96/100Washington 0.5 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesWhitman County value
Public EV charging ports · high19.6 /10k
96/100Washington 11.3 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyWhitman County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,577 /100k
95/100Washington 1,865 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWhitman County value
Injury deaths · low54 /100k
93/100Washington 86 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWhitman County value
Reading scores · high3.37
93/100Washington 2.98United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWhitman County value

Weaknesses

Drought exposure · high100%
1/100Washington 54%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAWhitman County value
Dental care shortage · high19.0
3/100Washington 5.6United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationWhitman County value
Child care cost burden · high41.8%
5/100Washington 36.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteWhitman County value
Voter turnout · low53.6%
8/100Washington 70.8%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionWhitman County value
Pharmacies · low0.8 /10k
8/100Washington 1.0 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsWhitman County value
Suicide rate · high22.9 /100k
12/100Washington 17.0 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataWhitman County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,891 (2015-2019) → 2,708 (2020-2024)
−6.3%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
1.4 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
74.5% (2015-2019) → 89.2% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
4.8% (2015-2019) → 19.5% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$50,539 (2015-2019) → $61,914 (2020-2024)
+23%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Average commute timeImproving
21.6 min (2015-2019) → 16.8 min (2020-2024)
−22%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, Colfax, Washington improved on 1 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 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+15 points74.5% → 89.2%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Colfax, Washington between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.6 min2015-2019	16.8 min2020-2024	−4.8 min	Within the margin of error	89%
Bachelor's degree or higher	30.1%2015-2019	32.3%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	45%
Broadband subscriptions	74.5%2015-2019	89.2%2020-2024	+15 points	Improved	79%
Effective property tax rate	0.97%2015-2019	0.88%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
High school diploma or higher	93.5%2015-2019	93.9%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	38%
Home price to income ratio	3.3×2015-2019	4.0×2020-2024	+0.7×	Within the margin of error	37%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4682015-2019	0.4502020-2024	−0.019	Within the margin of error	66%
Median household income	$50,5392015-2019	$61,9142020-2024	+23%	Within the margin of error	38%
Poverty rate	13.2%2015-2019	15.1%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	27%
Rent as share of income	37.9%2015-2019	37.3%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent-burdened households	60.7%2015-2019	60.7%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	56%

“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 Colfax, Washington five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Colfax, Washington 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, Colfax, Washington itself moved +3.5 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

2,708 residents (±24)

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

1,167 households (±106)

Colfax, Washington
Washington share

Under $25k20%†234
$25k–50k21%†245
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,167 households (±106)

Colfax, Washington
Washington share

Own65%759
Rent35%408

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

1,084 workers (±141)

Colfax, Washington
Washington share

Drive alone86%937
Carpool4.0%†43
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 Pullman, WA

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 Whitman County, the county holding most of Colfax's residents.

Whitman County has 873 employer establishments, 184 for every 10,000 residents (0.74× the US rate of 248; 0.71× Washington's), with 11,417 paid employees at an average annual pay of $56,100. The Census Bureau also counts 2,533 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 873; 2,533 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 184; US 248 · Washington 258
Paid employees: 11,417
Average annual pay: $56,100; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	76	16	0.87×About typical	1,410	$20,762	16
Lessors of real estate	58	12.2	0.99×About typical	277	$41,282	321
Ambulatory health care services	49	10.3	0.49×Fewer than typical	406	$72,323	121
Specialty trade contractors	46	9.7	0.62×Fewer than typical	315	$62,873	81
Construction of buildings	38	8	1.06×About typical	198	$70,798	66
Full-service restaurants	35	7.4	0.96×About typical	593	$23,406	3
Religious organizations	30	6.3	1.14×About typical	281	$19,808	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	26	5.5	0.81×About typical	88	$46,739	106
Banks and credit unions	24	5	1.56×More than typical	150	$53,933	—
Limited-service restaurants	24	5	0.63×Fewer than typical	649	$18,539	10
Automotive repair and maintenance	20	4.2	0.83×About typical	122	$41,189	20
Building equipment contractors	17	3.6	0.59×Fewer than typical	191	$65,220	6

Rank places for an industry Open Whitman County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 47,568 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Colfax, Washington: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; 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

Spending by fiscal year

329.7FY2017
799.8FY2018
1KFY2019
0FY2021
590FY2023
579.3FY2024
646.7FY2025

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 Colfax, Washington, so they do not add up across cities.

Colfax, Washington's figures are part of those of Whitman County, WA ($5.2M 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: Colfax is mostly in Whitman County.

See federal money in Whitman 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.

Colfax, Washington is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Michael BaumgartnerR-WA-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 2.4%

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.

Whitman County64100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Pullman, WA62

Other cities and towns in Whitman 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/5313785

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends