Pocatello, Idaho

Area Profile

57,635 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Pocatello, in Bannock County.

63out of 100
Area Score
Top 35% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
Opportunity2,123rd of 4,199 cities measured56
SchoolsTop 43% of 4,162 cities measured55
GrowthTop 7% of 4,224 cities measured76
Housing affordabilityTop 41% of 4,218 cities measured70
Climate3,945th of 4,225 cities measured56
Physical resilienceTop 46% of 4,226 cities measured62
AccessTop 21% of 4,226 cities measured98
Economic stability2,953rd of 4,226 cities measured47
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.2% and median household income $60,418, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured.

In the public schools here, 50% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 18.1 students for every teacher.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 343 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 66% on 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

Population
57,635
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$60,418
Bottom 40% nationally
Density
1,696/sq mi
34 sq mi of land
Median age
33.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Idaho
Metro area
Nearest major airport
PIH
7 mi · Pocatello Rgnl
Median home value
$271,000
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.2%, lower than in 55% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment fell 1.1% over the past year, to 25,181 employed residents.

33% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 73% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsBannock County, ID’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$53,12912th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftBannock County, ID’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$52,24910th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$4,6482024 ACS 5-Year$60,418Bottom 40%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,4972024 ACS 5-Year$32,287Bottom 45%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year13.5%Bottom 40%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year17.5 minTop 10%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year32.6%Top 27%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year75.3%43rd percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202625,181Bottom 30%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+2.0%Top 20%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−1.1%Bottom 43%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202626,28030th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year77.1%Bottom 46%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wagePocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$55,170Bottom 6%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wagePocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$45,160Bottom 7%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year0.9%84th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.2%Top 44%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20264.2%Top 45%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year11.1%64th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/074.82.9
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.2% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202460k51k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $60,418 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 — Pocatello, ID

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers1,380$28,870
Home Health and Personal Care Aides1,370$34,390
Customer Service Representatives1,130$37,940
Retail Salespersons990$30,220
General and Operations Managers880$78,100
Cashiers860$28,910

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.

50% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 57% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 18.1 students for every full-time teacher across 13 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
14
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
18.1
across 13 of them
Math proficiency
50.5%
Top 29% in Idaho
Reading proficiency
57.3%
Top 50% in Idaho
The 12 largest of 14 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Highland High SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT1,45622.449%57%
Franklin Middle SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT71821.157%70%
Hawthorne Middle SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT61217.547%53%
Alameda Middle SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT57217.353%61%
Claude a Wilcox Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT46417.253%57%
Gate City Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT42521.364%66%
Lewis & Clark Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT40118.238%43%
Syringa Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT32120.147%55%
Greenacres Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT28615.147%52%
Edahow Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT25818.472%77%
Washington Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT24214.242%47%
Tendoy Elementary SchoolPOCATELLO DISTRICT22113.852%57%

44.8% 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 Idaho’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 11% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 88.6, 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 Pocatello, ID Metro Area is up 40% over five years, and up 2.3% 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 $1,877 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.69% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,173, some 24% above the $948 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,173 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $46,900 a year, about 78% of the median household income here of $60,418.

The typical renter household here spends 29% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $948 a month.

A median home at $271,000 costs 3.4 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $79,024, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
88.6

Prices here run about 11% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Pocatello, ID 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
29.1%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.4×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,173
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$948
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$271,000
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Pocatello’s median household income of $60,418, 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 Pocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure202388.6Top 3%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Pocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+2.3%36th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Pocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+39.8%41st percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Pocatello, ID Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+147.1%99th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year3.4Bottom 25%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year64.5%27th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±3252024 ACS 5-Year24,13598th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$894Top 14%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,631Top 25%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,173Top 19%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$352024 ACS 5-Year$948Top 48%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$9,2412024 ACS 5-Year$271,00068th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$592024 ACS 5-Year$1,87753rd percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$3,9842024 ACS 5-Year$79,024Top 50%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year0.69%28th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year29.1%Bottom 45%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1502024 ACS 5-Year29595th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.2%64th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year5.5%42nd percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3332024 ACS 5-Year1,62597th 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

76/ 100
Top 7% of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in 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 58,231 in 2024.

Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 301 units authorized in 2025, up 137% on the prior year.

Federal tax returns show that people moving in from elsewhere in the US and people moving out roughly balanced across Bannock County, which contains Pocatello, in the most recent year. Households that moved in reported an average income of $53,129, close to the $52,249 of households that moved out.

At 6.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
343
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.0
Top 24% nationally
Year over year
+66%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
31.5%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202458k56k
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
0.0%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
56%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$53,129
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$52,249
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Bingham County, ID 383 people · 9.7% of arrivals
  2. Bonneville County, ID 274 people · 6.9% of arrivals
  3. Power County, ID 164 people · 4.2% of arrivals
  4. Ada County, ID 152 people · 3.9% of arrivals
  5. Salt Lake County, UT 141 people · 3.6% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Bingham County, ID 358 people · 9.0% of departures
  2. Bonneville County, ID 307 people · 7.7% of departures
  3. Ada County, ID 273 people · 6.9% of departures
  4. Power County, ID 143 people · 3.6% of departures
  5. Utah County, UT 124 people · 3.1% 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 Bannock County, ID. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

202020212022202320242025555127
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−46%).

Weather & climate

4 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 89°F and January a low of 17°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 11.8 inches, including 38.5 inches of snow.

Air quality measures a median index of 39, in the Good band, and about 2 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station POCATELLO RGNL AP, 6.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND1.4"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year592024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals11.8"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals38.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals17°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals89°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals41991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year22024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year392024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals45°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
39
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
59
90th percentile index
Days above 100
2
unhealthy for sensitive groups

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

62 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are wildfire, inland flooding and cold wave, with wildfire alone responsible for 27% of it. Inland flooding and cold wave are independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large those hazards are.

WildfireHigh
EarthquakeHigh
LightningModerate
Heat waveModerate

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

Violent crime
331
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
1,431
per 100,000 residents · 2025 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.

Pocatello's police department reported 331 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, near the middle of places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,431.

Bannock County records 0.0 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, lower than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 16.6 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 19.9 per 100,000 residents in Bannock County.

Homicide
0.0
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
16.6
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
19.9
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
24.3
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 Pocatello’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 Pocatello (Bannock County) rather than Pocatello 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

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Pocatello Rgnl at 7 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year88.4%Bottom 44%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle7 miTop 16%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Bottom 38%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1.0%2024 ACS 5-Year6.0%Top 42%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Pocatello RgnlPIH7 mi9,059 ft
Idaho Falls RgnlIDA49 mi9,002 ft
Logan-CacheLGU81 mi9,020 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.

Area Score
63
Your Score
—

Select one or more priorities to see how this location scores against them.

Other cities in Pocatello, ID

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
ChubbuckBannock County16,12665Chubbuck vs Pocatello

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 Pocatello side by side with a similar place.

Pocatello vs LoganPocatello vs Martinsville

Moving to Pocatello 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
2025 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 Pocatello

2 ZIP areas

Every ZIP area in Pocatello with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Pocatello closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
8320139,902$66,357$287,200—
83209937$19,336——