County · Alaska
Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska
Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska has a quality-of-life score of 16 out of 100 (very low), ranking #2,638 of 3,143 US counties. Within Alaska it ranks #26 of 30 counties. It ranks best on arts, entertainment and recreation (high), public libraries (high) and drought exposure (low). It ranks worst on distance to an emergency room (high), distance to an Amtrak station (high) and severe housing problems (high).
- Quality-of-life score
- #2,638 of 3,143 counties
- Alaska
- #26 of 30 in AK
- Population
- 1,357 (2025)
- Land area
- 23,897 mi²
- Density
- 0.1 /mi²
- FIPS code
- 02164
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 59 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US counties.
- Safety12#2,710/3,096
- Economy23#2,413/3,143
- Housing45#1,719/3,140
- Health13#2,735/3,144
- Healthcare9#2,865/3,143
- Environment—
- Education40#1,885/3,144
- Infrastructure15#2,665/3,144
- Community38#1,951/3,144
- Leisure & amenities56#1,380/3,143
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska ranks highest and lowest among US counties (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Arts, entertainment and recreation · high51.6 /10k
- Public libraries · high15.3 /10k
- Drought exposure · low0%98/100Alaska 0%United States 43%Nov 2025–Oct 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA
- Grocery stores · high7.4 /10k
- Social associations · high22.5 /10k
- Average commute time · low13.3 min93/100Alaska 19.4 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census BureauCensus table B08013High uncertainty
Weaknesses
- Distance to an emergency room · high104.3 mi
- Distance to an Amtrak station · high1,475 mi0/100Alaska 1,315 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau
- Severe housing problems · high28.1%
- Distance to an airport · high280 mi1/100Alaska 131 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau
- Restaurants and bars · low0.0 /10k
- Drug overdose deaths · high56.2 /100k1/100Alaska 40.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional data
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- PopulationFalling
1,447 (2020) → 1,357 (2025)
−6.2%5 yearsUS 331,578,104 → 341,784,857
- Average commute timeWorsening
5.8 min (2015-2019) → 13.3 min (2020-2024)
+129%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
- Some collegeWorsening
61.1% (2016-2020) → 43.3% (2019-2023)
−18 pts3 yearsUS 66.9% → 67.8%
- Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
17.8% (2015-2019) → 35.3% (2020-2024)
+17 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
- Job growthWorsening
8.5% (2021) → -8.5% (2026 Q1)
−17 pts5 yearsUS 3.4% → 0.1%
- Broadband subscriptionsImproving
65.3% (2015-2019) → 81.5% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
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.
Counties like Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska 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.
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).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
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.
Federal contract spending
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.
Public money & outcomes
Federal money per resident by fiscal year next to how the place changed, and, when its money jumped, how it compares with similar counties. A comparison, not cause and effect.
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.
Cities and towns in Lake and Peninsula Borough
Places whose residents live mostly in Lake and Peninsula Borough, largest first.
Neighboring counties
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar counties
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Dillingham Census Area, AK30Alike on July high, Overdose deaths, Avg temperature
- Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AK7Alike on Suicides, Amtrak, July high
- Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK39Alike on Avg temperature, July high, Libraries
- Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK34Alike on Firearm deaths, July high, Exercise access
- Nome Census Area, AK23Alike on July high, Firearm deaths, Grocery stores
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
- 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
- National Risk IndexFederal Emergency Management Agency · release v1.20.0
- Health Professional Shortage AreasHealth Resources and Services Administration · release 2026-10-09
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- Common Core of DataNational Center for Education Statistics · release 2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-10-06
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- 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
- 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
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
