City · Skagit County, Washington

Mount Vernon, Washington

Mount Vernon is a city in Skagit County, Washington, part of the Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA metro area. It has 35,377 residents. Mount Vernon, Washington has a quality-of-life score of 52 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,566 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Washington it ranks #244 of 395 cities and towns. It ranks best on hot days (low), median Air Quality Index (low) and preventable hospital stays (low). It ranks worst on drug overdose deaths (high), home price to income ratio (high) and comfortable days (low).

52Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,566 of 15,651 cities and towns
Washington: #244 of 395 in WA
Population: 35,377 (2020-2024)
Land area: 12 mi²
Density: 2,876.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 5347560

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.

Safety51#7,682/15,637
Economy39#9,519/15,631
Housing18#12,251/14,977
Health47#8,271/15,609
Healthcare57#6,669/15,650
Environment71#4,530/15,453
Education28#11,248/15,649
Infrastructure76#3,814/15,650
Community56#6,941/15,651
Leisure & amenities75#3,893/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Hot days · low1 days
98/100Washington 13 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSkagit County value
Median Air Quality Index · low25
97/100Washington 382025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySkagit County value
Preventable hospital stays · low1,712 /100k
93/100Washington 1,865 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSkagit County value
Public EV charging ports · high17.5 /10k
93/100Washington 11.3 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergySkagit County value
Mental health providers · high575 /100k
92/100Washington 568 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSkagit County value
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
84/100Washington 0.2%2025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySkagit County value

Weaknesses

Drug overdose deaths · high31.2 /100k
8/100Washington 32.7 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSkagit County value
Home price to income ratio · high6.2×
9/100Washington 5.8×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Comfortable days · low23.4%
11/100Washington 25.2%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSkagit County value
Natural hazard risk · high83.5
15/100Washington 63.52025Federal Emergency Management AgencySkagit County value
Child care cost burden · high36.6%
17/100Washington 36.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSkagit County value
Reading scores · low2.83
19/100Washington 2.98United States 3.052019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSkagit County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
5.1 /1k (2021) → 1.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−65%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Home price to income ratioWorsening
4.3× (2015-2019) → 6.2× (2020-2024)
+44%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
88.0% (2015-2019) → 94.3% (2020-2024)
+6.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
21.9% (2015-2019) → 27.9% (2020-2024)
+5.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateWorsening
18.6% (2015-2019) → 23.9% (2020-2024)
+5.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
51.1% (2015-2019) → 56.1% (2020-2024)
+5 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

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, Mount Vernon, Washington improved on 3 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 9 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++5.9 points21.9% → 27.9%
Broadband+6.3 points88.0% → 94.3%
Household income+22%$62,056 → $75,777

Declined2

Price / income+1.9×4.3× → 6.2×
Transit use−0.6 points1.1% → 0.5%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Mount Vernon, Washington between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	24.8 min2015-2019	22.9 min2020-2024	−2.0 min	Within the margin of error	70%
Bachelor's degree or higher	21.9%2015-2019	27.9%2020-2024	+5.9 points	Improved	74%
Broadband subscriptions	88.0%2015-2019	94.3%2020-2024	+6.3 points	Improved	39%
Child poverty rate	18.6%2015-2019	23.9%2020-2024	+5.3 points	Within the margin of error	20%
Effective property tax rate	1.10%2015-2019	0.84%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Little change	69%
High school diploma or higher	84.5%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+3.9 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Home price to income ratio	4.3×2015-2019	6.2×2020-2024	+1.9×	Declined	5%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4152015-2019	0.4382020-2024	+0.023	Within the margin of error	32%
Median household income	$62,0562015-2019	$75,7772020-2024	+22%	Improved	37%
Poverty rate	14.3%2015-2019	16.1%2020-2024	+1.8 points	Within the margin of error	28%
Public transit commuters	1.1%2015-2019	0.5%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Declined	20%
Rent as share of income	30.6%2015-2019	33.5%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	34%
Rent-burdened households	51.1%2015-2019	56.1%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	38%
Unemployment rate	5.7%2015-2019	6.0%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	10.7%2015-2019	10.3%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	53%

“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 Mount Vernon, Washington five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Mount Vernon, 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, Mount Vernon, Washington itself moved −1.7 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

35,377 residents (±43)

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

13,363 households (±486)

Mount Vernon, Washington
Washington share

Under $25k15%1,994
$25k–50k19%2,473
$50k–75k16%2,157

Homes

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

Owners and renters

13,363 households (±486)

Mount Vernon, Washington
Washington share

Own60%8,052
Rent40%5,311

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

15,586 workers (±682)

Mount Vernon, Washington
Washington share

Drive alone74%11,585
Carpool9.5%1,481
Public transit0.5%†79

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 Mount Vernon-Anacortes, 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 Skagit County, the county holding most of Mount Vernon's residents.

Skagit County has 3,670 employer establishments, 279 for every 10,000 residents (1.12× the US rate of 248; 1.08× Washington's), with 44,636 paid employees at an average annual pay of $60,690. The Census Bureau also counts 8,821 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 3,670; 8,821 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 279; US 248 · Washington 258
Paid employees: 44,636
Average annual pay: $60,690; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	340	25.9	1.67×More than typical	2,835	$67,366	441
Restaurants and other eating places	282	21.5	1.17×About typical	4,274	$29,459	35
Ambulatory health care services	243	18.5	0.89×About typical	2,806	$83,220	459
Construction of buildings	205	15.6	2.06×More than typical	1,037	$89,203	283
Lessors of real estate	165	12.6	1.02×About typical	381	$56,753	1,096
Services to buildings and dwellings	136	10.3	1.53×More than typical	630	$42,943	433
Full-service restaurants	128	9.7	1.27×More than typical	2,061	$34,834	19
Building finishing contractors	106	8.1	2.12×More than typical	910	$46,884	166
Building equipment contractors	94	7.2	1.19×About typical	925	$75,461	47
Limited-service restaurants	90	6.8	0.85×About typical	1,607	$24,511	9
Offices of other health practitioners	90	6.8	1.13×About typical	456	$45,118	278
Landscaping services	88	6.7	1.91×More than typical	407	$44,388	140

Rank places for an industry Open Skagit County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 131,453 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 $3.3M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Mount Vernon, Washington: $94.19 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $3.3M; −5% vs FY2025
Per resident: $94.19; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.2%; 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

Defense Logistics Agency$2M61%
U.S. Coast Guard$1.2M37%
Bureau of Land Management$48.7K1.5%
Department of the Army$8,7420.3%
Department of Veterans Affairs$1,4420.0%

Top recipients

FOOD SERVICES, INC.$2M61%
ROZEMA'S BOAT WORKS, INC$1.2M37%
HAMER ENVIRONMENTAL LIMITED PARTNERSHIP$48.7K1.5%
SKAGIT AGGREGATES LLC$8,7420.3%
PHILIPS NORTH AMERICA LLC$1,4420.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.7MFY2017
1.5MFY2018
2.4MFY2019
2.5MFY2020
2.6MFY2021
2.7MFY2022
3.2MFY2023
3M

Top industries (NAICS)

Bakeries and tortilla manufacturing · 3118$2M61%
Ship and boat building · 3366$1.2M37%
Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419$48.7K1.5%
Other specialty trade contractors · 2389$8,7420.3%
Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing · 3345$1,4420.0%

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 Mount Vernon, Washington, so they do not add up across cities.

Mount Vernon, Washington's figures are part of those of Skagit County, WA ($66.4M in FY2026), never added to them: 5.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Skagit 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.

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

House

Rick LarsenD-WA-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%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.

Skagit County73100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA76

Other cities and towns in Skagit 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/5347560

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends