Palmetto, Florida

Area Profile

13,588 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Palmetto, in Manatee County.

46out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 11% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
Opportunity2,724th of 4,199 cities measured49
Schools2,822nd of 4,162 cities measured36
Growth3,224th of 4,224 cities measured36
Housing affordability3,204th of 4,218 cities measured53
ClimateTop 14% of 4,225 cities measured81
Physical resilience4,047th of 4,226 cities measured10
AccessTop 9% of 4,226 cities measured99
Economic stability2,475th of 4,226 cities measured53
The quick read

Unemployment is 5.0% and median household income $62,621, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured. The unemployment rate is published for Manatee County, FL, which contains Palmetto, rather than for Palmetto alone.

In the public schools here, 58% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 17.7 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 9 units authorized over the past twelve months, against 12 the year before.

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

Population
13,588
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$62,621
Bottom 44% nationally
Density
2,533/sq mi
5.4 sq mi of land
Median age
49.8
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Florida
Nearest major airport
SRQ
9 mi · Sarasota/Bradenton Intl
Median home value
$313,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Manatee County, FL, which contains Palmetto, is 5.0% — higher than in all but 25% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Manatee County, FL, which contains Palmetto, fell 0.5% over the past year, to 192,880 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsManatee County, FL’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$121,90393rd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftManatee County, FL’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$80,30765th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$7,3332024 ACS 5-Year$62,621Bottom 44%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$6,0232024 ACS 5-Year$39,890Top 33%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year12.7%Bottom 42%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.1 min2024 ACS 5-Year28.1 minBottom 43%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year28.1%Top 34%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year72.4%34th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentManatee County, FL’s figureJuly 2026192,880Top 33%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Manatee County, FL’s figureJuly 2026+1.9%Top 21%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Manatee County, FL’s figureJuly 2026−0.5%Top 44%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceManatee County, FL’s figureJuly 2026202,93367th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year80.6%Top 41%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageNorth Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$62,500Bottom 24%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageNorth Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$47,440Bottom 19%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.2%2024 ACS 5-Year0.4%79th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Manatee County, FL’s figureJuly 2026+0.6%Bottom 15%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateManatee County, FL’s figureJuly 20265.0%Bottom 25%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year11.0%64th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202463k51k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $62,621 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Retail Salespersons13,420$35,160
Waiters and Waitresses9,200$36,660
General and Operations Managers8,610$94,900
Registered Nurses8,380$86,130
Fast Food and Counter Workers8,330$30,000
Cashiers7,520$31,240

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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Manatee County, FL, which contains this city.

58% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 50% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 17.7 students for every full-time teacher across 13 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
13
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
17.7
across all schools here
Math proficiency
58.0%
Bottom 48% in Florida
Reading proficiency
49.9%
Bottom 24% in Florida
The 12 largest of 13 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Palmetto High SchoolMANATEE2,18522.543%40%
Manatee School for the Arts · charterMANATEE2,05119.062%59%
Buffalo Creek Middle SchoolMANATEE1,17121.759%47%
Virgil Mills Elementary SchoolMANATEE86316.972%68%
Imagine Charter School at North Manatee · charterMANATEE85317.853%51%
James Tillman Elementary Magnet SchoolMANATEE61416.665%34%
Palm View K-8 SchoolMANATEE60613.852%42%
Hola! Elementary @ Msa · charterMANATEE55115.3——
Palmetto Elementary SchoolMANATEE51914.050%37%
Palmetto Charter School · charterMANATEE45813.588%81%
Blackburn Elementary SchoolMANATEE45213.769%43%
Lincoln Memorial Middle SchoolMANATEE44815.4——

54.8% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

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 Florida’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 4% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 104.2, 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 North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area is up 38% over five years, but down 0.5% 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 $2,393 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.76% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,820, some 33% above the $1,366 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,820 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $72,800 a year, about 116% of the median household income here of $62,621.

The typical renter household here spends 34% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,366 a month.

A median home at $313,400 costs 4.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $76,222, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
104.2

Prices here run about 4% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL 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.

Rent as a share of income
34.0%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
4.1×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,820
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,366
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$313,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Palmetto’s median household income of $62,621, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2023104.2Bottom 37%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2−0.5%4th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+37.5%35th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+101.0%64th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.92024 ACS 5-Year4.1Bottom 16%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year68.8%35th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±3882024 ACS 5-Year7,11391st percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,570Bottom 39%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$2,360Bottom 39%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,820Bottom 41%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$1122024 ACS 5-Year$1,366Bottom 24%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$31,5132024 ACS 5-Year$313,40074th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$3152024 ACS 5-Year$2,39363rd percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$13,9072024 ACS 5-Year$76,222Bottom 46%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.13%2024 ACS 5-Year0.76%35th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±10%2024 ACS 5-Year34.0%Bottom 23%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±3132024 ACS 5-Year1,50999th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year21.2%93rd percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year4.6%37th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±2792024 ACS 5-Year1,83997th percentileof 32,3302024 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.

Development Momentum

36/ 100
Ranks 3,224 of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been falling for the last 4 years of a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

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 3% since 2020, reaching 13,682 in 2024.

Permit activity fell in each of the 4 calendar years through 2025.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 9 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Manatee County, which contains Palmetto, gained about 2.9% 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 $121,903, above the $80,307 of households that moved out.

At 0.7 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
9
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.7
Bottom 18% nationally
Year over year
−25%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202414k13k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
+2.9%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
55%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$121,903
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$80,307
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Sarasota County, FL 5,395 people · 17% of arrivals
  2. Hillsborough County, FL 2,128 people · 6.7% of arrivals
  3. Pinellas County, FL 1,716 people · 5.4% of arrivals
  4. Lee County, FL 495 people · 1.6% of arrivals
  5. Broward County, FL 432 people · 1.4% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Sarasota County, FL 4,121 people · 19% of departures
  2. Hillsborough County, FL 2,297 people · 10% of departures
  3. Pinellas County, FL 978 people · 4.4% of departures
  4. Polk County, FL 358 people · 1.6% of departures
  5. Pasco County, FL 309 people · 1.4% 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 Manatee County, FL. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

2020202120222023202420256210
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−77%).

Weather & climate

8 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 52°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 49.0 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 37, in the Good band, and one day a year passes 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station SARASOTA BRADENTON AP, 8.6 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND9.1"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year502024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals49.0"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals52°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals91°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals81991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year12024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year372024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals21°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
37
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
50
90th percentile index
Days above 100
1
unhealthy for sensitive groups

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

10 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are hurricane, inland flooding and tornado, with hurricane alone responsible for 61% of it. Inland flooding and tornado are independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large those hazards are.

HurricaneHigh
LightningModerate
Coastal floodingElevated
Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: tornado, inland flooding, wildfire, heat wave, drought, strong wind, hail, landslide, earthquake, winter weather, tsunami, volcanic activity, ice storm, avalanche.

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.

Violent crime
608
per 100,000 residents · 2024 calendar year
Property crime
1,786
per 100,000 residents · 2024 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Palmetto's police department reported 608 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,786.

Manatee County records 4.8 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 14.7 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 11.1 per 100,000 residents in Manatee County.

Homicide
4.8
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
14.7
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
11.1
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
17.7
per 100,000 residents

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 Palmetto’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 Palmetto (Manatee County) rather than Palmetto 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

6 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Sarasota/Bradenton Intl at 9 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±11%2024 ACS 5-Year89.7%Top 50%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle9 miTop 23%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle6Top 27%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year8.5%Bottom 44%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Sarasota/Bradenton IntlSRQ9 mi9,500 ft
St Pete-Clearwater IntlPIE27 mi9,730 ft
Tampa IntlTPA31 mi11,002 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.

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Area Score
46
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Other cities in North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
North PortSarasota County84,60555North Port vs Palmetto
BradentonManatee County57,01448Bradenton vs Palmetto
SarasotaSarasota County56,97047Sarasota vs Palmetto
Lakewood RanchManatee County43,94559
VeniceSarasota County27,47953
South BradentonManatee County25,99052
EnglewoodSarasota County20,09152
Bayshore GardensManatee County18,13152
South VeniceSarasota County17,48453
Palmer RanchSarasota County16,86755
FruitvilleSarasota County15,17255
Sarasota SpringsSarasota County12,61155

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Palmetto side by side with a similar place.

Palmetto vs Palm SpringsPalmetto vs Fort Walton Beach

Moving to Palmetto from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2024 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.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
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA 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.

ZIP codes in Palmetto

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Palmetto with census figures of its own, largest first.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
3422156,208$77,712$338,60047