Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.

Safety3#896/924
Economy39#562/925
Housing43#524/925
Health39#565/925
Healthcare63#340/923
Environment23#705/917
Education62#352/925
Infrastructure34#613/925
Community29#661/925
Leisure & amenities32#629/925

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Jackson, MS metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).

Strengths

Depression · low18.7%
96/100Mississippi 20.1%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
New business applications · high23.1 /1k
96/100Mississippi 17.8 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauAggregated from counties
Cost of buying a home today · low24.1%
91/100Mississippi 25.6%United States 34.1%Aug 2026Zillow Research
Distance to an airport · low16 mi
90/100Mississippi 60 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauAggregated from counties
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
81/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Dentists · high78 /100k
81/100Mississippi 52 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties

Weaknesses

Homicide rate · high19.7 /100k
2/100Mississippi 14.6 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
Firearm deaths · high31.2 /100k
3/100Mississippi 25.8 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.1 µg/m³
7/100Mississippi 8.5 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyAggregated from counties
Median Air Quality Index · high52
9/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Loneliness · high37.7%
10/100Mississippi 37.2%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.489
11/100Mississippi 0.482United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083

Trends

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

Drought exposureWorsening
5% (2021) → 39% (Oct 2025–Sep 2026)
+34 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
77.2% (2015-2019) → 88.3% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Drug overdose deathsImproving
23.1 /100k (2021) → 12.3 /100k (Mar 2025–Feb 2026)
−47%5 yearsUS 30.8 /100k → 18.4 /100k
Homicide rateImproving
33.5 /100k (2021) → 19.7 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−41%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
New homes permittedImproving
2.3 /1k (2021) → 3.3 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+41%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Mental health providersImproving
219 /100k (2021) → 310 /100k (2025)
+41%4 yearsUS 282 /100k → 348 /100k

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, Jackson, MS metro area improved on 11 of 29 measures with a comparison and declined on 7. 6 moved within the margin of error and 5 barely changed.

Earlier period
Latest period
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among metro and micro areas: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts. Periods differ by measure (most compare 2015-2019 with 2020-2024); each row names its own in its tooltip and in the table.

Improved11

Restaurants+20%5.3 /10k → 6.4 /10k
Real income+37%$49,752 → $68,337
Unemployment−4.1 points7.6% → 3.5%
Broadband+11 points77.2% → 88.3%
Firearm deaths−17%37.7 /100k → 31.2 /100k

Declined7

Suicides+46%10.4 /100k → 15.3 /100k
Rent / income+2.7 points29.6% → 32.3%
Inequality+0.0160.473 → 0.489
Rent burden+5.3 points49.0% → 54.4%
Traffic deaths+19%19.1 /100k → 22.7 /100k

All 29 measures

Change of every measure of Jackson, MS metro area between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Arts, entertainment and recreation	2.7 /10k2020	3.2 /10k2025	+20%	Improved	74%
Average commute time	24.6 min2015-2019	25.0 min2020-2024	+0.5 min	Within the margin of error	48%
Bachelor's degree or higher	29.8%2015-2019	32.2%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Improved	40%
Broadband subscriptions	77.2%2015-2019	88.3%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	71%
Child poverty rate	24.2%2015-2019	25.4%2020-2024	+1.1 points	Within the margin of error	14%
Distance to an airport	16 mi2020	16 mi2025	−0 mi	Little change	96%
Drug overdose deaths	18.1 /100k2020	12.3 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026	−32%	Improved	59%
Effective property tax rate	0.69%2015-2019	0.61%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Little change	33%
Firearm deaths	37.7 /100k2020	31.2 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−17%	Improved	79%
Grocery stores	1.1 /10k2020	1.1 /10k2025	−0%	Little change	51%
Gyms and fitness centers	1.2 /10k2020	1.3 /10k2025	+16%	Improved	66%
High school diploma or higher	87.3%2015-2019	88.4%2020-2024	+1.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	3.3×2020-2024	+0.5×	Declined	45%
Homicide rate	30.4 /100k2020	19.7 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−35%	Improved	62%
Income adjusted for local prices	$49,7522019	$68,3372024	+37%	Improved	82%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4732015-2019	0.4892020-2024	+0.016	Declined	18%
Median household income	$52,5042015-2019	$61,6442020-2024	+17%	Improved	8%
New business applications	22.5 /1k2020	23.1 /1k2025	+2.8%	Little change	6%
Pharmacies	2.2 /10k2020	2.0 /10k2025	−11%	Declined	43%
Poverty rate	17.0%2015-2019	17.7%2020-2024	+0.7 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Public libraries	0.8 /10k2019	0.8 /10k2024	+0.3%	Little change	66%
Public transit commuters	0.3%2015-2019	0.4%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	90%
Rent as share of income	29.6%2015-2019	32.3%2020-2024	+2.7 points	Declined	14%
Rent-burdened households	49.0%2015-2019	54.4%2020-2024	+5.3 points	Declined	15%
Restaurants and bars	5.3 /10k2020	6.4 /10k2025	+20%	Improved	92%
Suicide rate	10.4 /100k2020	15.3 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	+46%	Declined	9%
Traffic deaths	19.1 /100k2015-2019	22.7 /100k2020-2024	+19%	Declined	29%
Unemployment rate	7.6%2020	3.5%2025	−4.1 points	Improved	82%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	12.6%2015-2019	12.6%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	42%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 786 metro and micro areas that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: Regional Economic Accounts; Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; Mapping Injury, Overdose, and Violence; American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates; Business Formation Statistics; Public Libraries Survey; Fatality Analysis Reporting System; Distance to airports and intercity rail. 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 925 metro and micro areas 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.

Metro and micro areas like Jackson, MS metro area five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Jackson, MS metro area 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, Jackson, MS metro area itself moved −1.8 points in standing on average over the same 28 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

611,324 residents

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

237,841 households (±1,443)

Jackson, MS metro area
United States share

Under $25k20%48,527
$25k–50k22%51,869
$50k–75k16%38,720

Homes

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

Owners and renters

237,841 households (±1,443)

Jackson, MS metro area
United States share

Own68%160,548
Rent32%77,293

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

267,942 workers (±2,892)

Jackson, MS metro area
United States share

Drive alone79%212,370
Carpool11%28,430
Public transit0.4%†1,032

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The 10 largest occupations in Jackson, MS employ 65,060 people. 1 pay a median above the US median and 9 below it.

Above the US median
Below the US median

The largest occupations in Jackson, MS by employment, with median annual pay and how it compares with the United States
Occupation	Jobs	Median pay	vs USCompared with the US	Concentration
Retail Salespersons8,770 jobs	8,770	$29,070US $35,410	−18%	1.29×
Registered Nurses8,700 jobs	8,700	$82,630US $97,550	−15%	1.48×
Fast Food and Counter Workers8,460 jobs	8,460	$22,630US $31,200	−27%	1.26×
Home Health and Personal Care Aides7,800 jobs	7,800	$23,130US $35,800	−35%	1.04×
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers6,590 jobs	6,590	$58,100US $58,640	−1%	1.84×
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand5,890 jobs	5,890	$36,910US $40,240	−8%	1.15×
Cashiers5,320 jobs	5,320	$28,000US $32,880	−15%	0.99×
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators4,810 jobs	4,810	$63,170US $44,650	+41%	1.97×
Stockers and Order Fillers4,450 jobs	4,450	$34,060US $37,330	−9%	0.9×
Customer Service Representatives4,270 jobs	4,270	$37,850US $44,770	−15%	0.95×

Look up any occupation

Search more than 800 occupations and see what they pay in Jackson, MS.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025-05 (all industries and ownerships) bls.gov/oes

Reference period: 2025-05. BLS publishes metro areas, states and the nation (not counties or cities), so a county or city page shows its metro area.
Pay is not adjusted for the cost of living, so a higher median does not mean more purchasing power.
BLS caps the highest wages it publishes: where a figure is shown as “or more”, the real value is at least that much.
Some occupations (teachers, performers) are published by the hour or school year and shown here as an annual figure.

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.

Jackson, MS has 14,359 employer establishments, 236 for every 10,000 residents (0.95× the US rate of 248), with 230,566 paid employees at an average annual pay of $51,489. The Census Bureau also counts 61,612 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 14,359; 61,612 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 236; US 248
Paid employees: 230,566
Average annual pay: $51,489; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,232	20.2	0.97×About typical	16,915	$62,906	3,356
Restaurants and other eating places	1,098	18	0.98×About typical	22,361	$18,388	395
Specialty trade contractors	727	11.9	0.77×Fewer than typical	6,072	$62,325	4,191
Limited-service restaurants	615	10.1	1.26×More than typical	13,212	$16,797	156
Lessors of real estate	586	9.6	0.78×Fewer than typical	2,403	$53,029	4,884
Religious organizations	523	8.6	1.55×More than typical	4,490	$24,959	—
Legal services	447	7.3	1.36×More than typical	3,117	$81,400	766
Offices of physicians	418	6.9	1.06×About typical	5,658	$97,558	628
Gasoline stations	400	6.6	2.02×More than typical	2,149	$26,301	56
Insurance agencies and brokerages	391	6.4	1.46×More than typical	2,609	$79,506	1,241
Services to buildings and dwellings	359	5.9	0.87×About typical	2,632	$26,029	5,530
Building equipment contractors	328	5.4	0.89×About typical	3,218	$63,779	823

Rank places for an industry

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 609,365 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.
A metro area's figures are the exact sums of its counties.
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 contract spending

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $665.2M on contracts performed in Jackson, MS metro area: $1,091 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $665.2M; −10% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1,091; US $1,994
Sole-source: 14%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.2%; 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 the Air Force$218M33%
Department of the Navy$185.9M

Federal grants & assistance

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $4.1B in grants, loans, direct payments and insurance for Jackson, MS metro area: $6,740 per resident (US $12,955).

Assistance · FY2026: $4.1B; −2.6% vs FY2025
Per resident: $6,740; US $12,955
Loan face value: $448.2M; lent or guaranteed
To individuals: 0.7%; counted, never named

Top programs

96.002 · Social Security Retirement Insurance$2.2B53%
64.109 · Veterans Compensation for Service-Connected Disability$372.3M9.1%
96.001 · Social Security Disability Insurance$350.4M8.5%
96.004 · Social Security Survivors Insurance$221.3M5.4%
96.006 · Supplemental Security Income$171.3M4.2%
84.063 · Federal Pell Grant Program$85.2M2.1%
93.600 · Head Start$78.4M1.9%
66.489 · Response to Emergency Situations Affecting Public Water Systems (Sdwa 1442(B))$54M1.3%

Top recipients (organizations)

MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION$139.6M3.4%
JACKSON, MS
JXN WATER$58.3M1.4%
JACKSON, MS
JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY$51.3M1.2%
JACKSON, MS
MISSISSPPI REGIONAL HSING AUTH$44.3M1.1%
JACKSON, MS
UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER$36.3M

Organizations only: awards to individuals and county aggregate records count in the totals but are never listed. Grants to state governments recorded at the agency's own address are counted statewide, not in the capital's county.

Top agencies

Social Security Administration$2.9B72%
Under Secretary for Benefits/Veterans Benefits Administration$419.7M10%
Department of Veterans Affairs
Department of Education$140.5M3.4%
Federal Highway Administration$139.5M3.4%
Department of Transportation
Administration for Children and Families$78.9M

Assistance by fiscal year

4.1BFY2021
3.9BFY2022
3.8BFY2023
4.1BFY2024
4.2BFY2025
4.1BFY2026

County aggregates

82%

Share of obligations reported only as county totals of many small awards (for example Social Security or Medicare payments), with no recipient named.

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Counties in Jackson, MS

Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.

Principal cities

The cities the area is named for.

JacksonPrincipal city146,631

Largest cities and towns

By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.

Other metro and micro areas in Mississippi

Areas based in Mississippi, best score first.

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Places that share a border, best score first.

Similar metro and micro areas

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.

Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-09-29
Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
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
Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08

JSON · /api/v1/places/M27140

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Improved11

Declined7

Metro and micro areas like Jackson, MS metro area five years ago that improved

Who lives here

Age and sex

Income

Household income

Homes

Owners and renters

Getting to work

How people get to work

Jobs and pay

Look up any occupation

Local businesses

Federal contract spending

Top buying agencies

Federal grants & assistance

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

Counties in Jackson, MS

Principal cities

Largest cities and towns

Other metro and micro areas in Mississippi

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Similar metro and micro areas

Data and sources

Improved11

Declined7

Age and sex

Household income

Owners and renters

How people get to work

Race and Hispanic origin

Education

Rent paid

Home values

Age of homes

Size of homes

Time to get to work

Look up any occupation

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

Top buying agencies

By type

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

What was bought

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards