Flagstaff, Arizona
Area Profile
76,445 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Flagstaff, in Coconino County.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 16 sourcesEmployment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 5.1% and the Opportunity signal places Flagstaff in the bottom 9%.
In the public schools here, 39% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 14.5 students for every teacher.
Residential permitting has slowed: 302 units authorized over the past twelve months, 48% below the prior year.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 5.1% — higher than in all but 22% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment fell 7.8% over the past year, to 39,842 employed residents.
52% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 90% of measured US cities.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsCoconino County, AZ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $61,366 | 30th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftCoconino County, AZ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $63,236 | 31st percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$2,3752024 ACS 5-Year | $71,512 | Top 43%of 29,223 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$1,6452024 ACS 5-Year | $38,409 | Top 36%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 13.0% | Bottom 42%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±0.7 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 17.7 min | Top 11%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 52.3% | Top 10%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 61.7% | 14th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 39,842 | Bottom 41%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | −3.5% | Bottom 9%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | −7.8% | Bottom 1%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 41,982 | 42nd percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 83.5% | Top 30%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Mean annual wageFlagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $61,230 | Bottom 20%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Median annual wageFlagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS | $47,500 | Bottom 20%of 3,729 | 2025 OEWS |
| Public transit to work ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.3% | 91st percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | +0.5% | Bottom 19%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 5.1% | Bottom 22%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 13.3% | 72nd percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
Largest occupations — Flagstaff, AZ
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 2,790 | $33,690 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 2,210 | $37,080 |
| General and Operations Managers | 2,180 | $77,740 |
| Retail Salespersons | 2,150 | $36,440 |
| Cashiers | 2,120 | $35,810 |
| Registered Nurses | 1,570 | $100,780 |
Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.
Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
39% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 42% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 14.5 students for every full-time teacher across 16 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coconino High School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 1,444 | 18.1 | 47% | 37% |
| Sinagua Middle School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 1,013 | 16.6 | 28% | 35% |
| Mount Elden Middle School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 678 | 14.7 | 23% | 26% |
| Northland Preparatory Academy · charter | Northland Preparatory Academy (4204) | 637 | 13.6 | 66% | 68% |
| Manuel DeMiguel Elementary School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 561 | 15.6 | 45% | 60% |
| Weitzel's Puente de Hozho Bilingual Magnet School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 426 | 14.7 | 42% | 42% |
| W F Killip Elementary School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 396 | 13.7 | 23% | 32% |
| Thomas M Knoles Elementary School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 395 | 14.6 | 40% | 47% |
| John Q Thomas Elementary School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 356 | 13.7 | 30% | 38% |
| Sturgeon Cromer Elementary School | Flagstaff Unified District (4192) | 350 | 13.0 | 42% | 54% |
| Pine Forest School · charter | Pine Forest Education Association Inc. (4201) | 215 | 11.9 | 32% | 42% |
| Mountain School · charter | Mountain School Inc. (4203) | 184 | 10.2 | 57% | 72% |
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Arizona’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →Prices for everything a household buys run about 8% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 91.9, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area is up 47% over five years, and up 2.9% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $2,181 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.39% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,921, some 17% above the $1,645 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,921 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $76,800 a year, about 107% of the median household income here of $71,512.
The typical renter household here spends 35% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,645 a month.
A median home at $552,900 costs 5.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $109,446, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.
Prices here run about 8% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.
Published for the Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.
The figures above are measured against Flagstaff’s median household income of $71,512, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of living indexthe Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2023 | 91.9 | Top 13%of 3,700 | 2023 |
| Home price change (1 year)the Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +2.9% | 47th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +46.7% | 68th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the Flagstaff, AZ Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2 | +118.0% | 84th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year | 5.1 | Bottom 8%of 26,815 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 42.3% | 5th percentileof 31,717 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±5452024 ACS 5-Year | 31,994 | 98th percentileof 32,177 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $1,727 | Bottom 32%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $2,343 | Bottom 41%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,921 | Bottom 36%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$572024 ACS 5-Year | $1,645 | Bottom 16%of 23,120 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$20,0032024 ACS 5-Year | $552,900 | 90th percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$972024 ACS 5-Year | $2,181 | 59th percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$6,2602024 ACS 5-Year | $109,446 | Top 21%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.02%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.39% | 5th percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 34.6% | Bottom 21%of 22,950 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±4282024 ACS 5-Year | 1,999 | 99th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 6.2% | 83rd percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 4.5% | 36th percentileof 31,769 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±4652024 ACS 5-Year | 3,444 | 99th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has grown 1% since 2020, reaching 77,539 in 2024.
Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 77,539 residents in 2024, up 0.9% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.
Federal tax returns show Coconino County, which contains Flagstaff, lost about 1.2% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $61,366, close to the $63,236 of households that moved out.
At 4.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Maricopa County, AZ 1,952 people · 27% of arrivals
- Yavapai County, AZ 521 people · 7.3% of arrivals
- Navajo County, AZ 369 people · 5.2% of arrivals
- Pima County, AZ 210 people · 2.9% of arrivals
- Apache County, AZ 148 people · 2.1% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Maricopa County, AZ 2,233 people · 27% of departures
- Yavapai County, AZ 665 people · 7.9% of departures
- Navajo County, AZ 404 people · 4.8% of departures
- Pima County, AZ 359 people · 4.3% of departures
- Mohave County, AZ 147 people · 1.8% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Coconino County, AZ. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
4 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 82°F and January a low of 18°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 20.5 inches, including 90.1 inches of snow.
Air quality measures a median index of 46, in the Good band, and about 5 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| 90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year | 74 | 2024 calendar year |
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 20.5" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals | 90.1" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 18°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 82°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 4 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year | 5 | 2024 calendar year |
| Median air quality index2024 calendar year | 46 | 2024 calendar year |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 37°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Air quality
A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and lightning, with inland flooding alone responsible for 65% of it. Lightning is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Low or minimal exposure: lightning, winter weather, avalanche, cold wave, heat wave, ice storm, hail, drought, tornado, strong wind, hurricane, tsunami, coastal flooding.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.
Flagstaff's police department reported 501 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 2,110.
Coconino County has a modeled homicide rate of about 5.4 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at 21.5 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at 21.5 per 100,000 residents in Coconino County.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Offenses are reported to the FBI by Flagstaff’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Flagstaff (Coconino County) rather than Flagstaff itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Flagstaff Pulliam at 4 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 88.7% | Bottom 45%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 4 mi | Top 6%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 2 | Bottom 8%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 4.9% | Top 36%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flagstaff Pulliam | FLG | 4 mi | 8,800 ft |
| Grand Canyon Ntl Park | GCN | 61 mi | 8,999 ft |
| Phoenix Deer Valley | DVT | 107 mi | 8,196 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
Customize your score
What matters to you?
Choose what you weight most heavily. Nothing is saved to an account — your preferences stay in this browser, and the Area Score never changes.
Select one or more priorities to see how this location scores against them.
Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyCompare
Put Flagstaff side by side with a similar place.
Moving to Flagstaff from somewhere else?
You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.
Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Safety | Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency | 2025 calendar year |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Housing | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | 2025 OEWS |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Climate | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System Daily Air Quality Index by county | 2024 calendar year |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.