Winfield, Kansas

Area Profile

11,711 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Winfield, in Cowley County.

47out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 13% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 13 sources
Opportunity3,985th of 4,199 cities measured28
Schools2,432nd of 4,162 cities measured43
Growth3,777th of 4,224 cities measured26
Housing affordabilityTop 35% of 4,218 cities measured72
Climate2,777th of 4,225 cities measured65
Physical resilience2,299th of 4,226 cities measured53
Access3,159th of 4,226 cities measured83
Economic stability3,930th of 4,226 cities measured27
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 5.0% and the Opportunity signal places Winfield in the bottom 5%. The unemployment rate is published for Cowley County, KS, which contains Winfield, rather than for Winfield alone.

In the public schools here, 25% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 12.5 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 10 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
11,711
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$56,656
Bottom 34% nationally
Density
1,051/sq mi
11.1 sq mi of land
Median age
38.9
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Kansas
Nearest major airport
BEC
34 mi · Beech Factory
Median home value
$132,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

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

Employment across Cowley County, KS, which contains Winfield, fell 2.1% over the past year, to 14,184 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsCowley County, KS’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$44,9773rd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftCowley County, KS’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$44,6722nd percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$7,9082024 ACS 5-Year$56,656Bottom 34%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$10,0792024 ACS 5-Year$35,969Top 43%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year15.3%Bottom 34%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.4 min2024 ACS 5-Year21.5 minTop 23%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year27.8%Top 34%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year75.4%44th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentCowley County, KS’s figureJuly 202614,184Bottom 11%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Cowley County, KS’s figureJuly 2026−5.2%Bottom 4%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Cowley County, KS’s figureJuly 2026−2.1%Bottom 18%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceCowley County, KS’s figureJuly 202614,93112th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year69.0%Bottom 25%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Cowley County, KS’s figureJuly 2026−0.2%Top 44%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateCowley County, KS’s figureJuly 20265.0%Bottom 25%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year5.7%40th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202458k50k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $56,656 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.

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

25% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 31% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.5 students for every full-time teacher across 8 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
8
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.5
across all schools here
Math proficiency
25.0%
Bottom 32% in Kansas
Reading proficiency
30.7%
Bottom 32% in Kansas
All 8 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Winfield HighWinfield63811.422%22%
Winfield Middle SchoolWinfield45612.728%34%
Whittier ElemWinfield25914.437%47%
Irving ElemWinfield23413.817%22%
Lowell ElemWinfield21413.417%32%
Central ElemCentral16218.032%47%
Central Jr-Sr HighCentral1398.717%12%
Country View ElemWinfield11412.735%45%

56.0% 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 Kansas’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Kansas is up 42% over five years, and up 3.4% 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 $2,342 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.76% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $877, some 12% above the $786 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $877 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $35,100 a year, about 62% of the median household income here of $56,656.

The typical renter household here spends 30% of its income on rent, at the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $786 a month.

A median home at $132,700 costs 2.0 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $67,761, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
30.4%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.0×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$877
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$786
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$132,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Winfield’s median household income of $56,656, 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
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Kansas’s figure2026 Q2+3.4%54th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Kansas’s figure2026 Q2+42.4%48th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Kansas’s figure2026 Q2+72.7%19th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year2.0Top 31%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year64.7%28th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±2632024 ACS 5-Year5,36789th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$668Top 1%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,139Top 2%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$877Top 1%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$1142024 ACS 5-Year$786Top 27%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$21,1352024 ACS 5-Year$132,70032nd percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$2172024 ACS 5-Year$2,34262nd percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$7,6812024 ACS 5-Year$67,761Bottom 34%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.33%2024 ACS 5-Year1.76%87th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year30.4%Bottom 39%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±732024 ACS 5-Year7186th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.3%64th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year15.5%80th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±2212024 ACS 5-Year90294th 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.

Development Momentum

26/ 100
Ranks 3,777 of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been falling for the last 2 years of a series running from 2022 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 fallen 1% since 2020, to 11,678 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 10 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show that people moving in from elsewhere in the US and people moving out roughly balanced across Cowley County, which contains Winfield, in the most recent year. Households that moved in reported an average income of $44,977, close to the $44,672 of households that moved out.

At 0.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
10
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.9
Bottom 23% nationally
Year over year
−17%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202412k12k
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
−0.1%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
50%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$44,977
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$44,672
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Sedgwick County, KS 275 people · 20% of arrivals
  2. Sumner County, KS 157 people · 12% of arrivals
  3. Kay County, OK 79 people · 5.9% of arrivals
  4. Butler County, KS 46 people · 3.4% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Sedgwick County, KS 365 people · 27% of departures
  2. Kay County, OK 108 people · 7.8% of departures
  3. Sumner County, KS 84 people · 6.1% of departures
  4. Butler County, KS 66 people · 4.8% 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 Cowley County, KS. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

2022202320242025327.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2022 (−36%).

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 92°F and January a low of 24°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 34.9 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station WINFIELD STROTHER FLD AP, 6.0 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.3"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals34.9"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals24°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals92°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals47°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

53 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and cold wave, with inland flooding alone responsible for 28% of it. Cold wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

WildfireHigh
TornadoModerate
Ice stormModerate
Strong windElevated
HailElevated
Heat waveModerate
Winter weatherModerate
DroughtModerate
Inland floodingModerate

Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, landslide, lightning, earthquake, hurricane, coastal flooding, tsunami, avalanche, volcanic activity.

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
317
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
3,252
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.

Winfield's police department reported 317 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, near the middle of places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 3,252.

Cowley 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 about 14.5 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at about 14.6 per 100,000 residents in Cowley County.

Homicide
0.0
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
14.5
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Drug overdose
14.6
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Suicide
18.9
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured

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 Winfield’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 Winfield (Cowley County) rather than Winfield 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.

Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this 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. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. 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 Beech Factory at 34 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year85.1%Bottom 31%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle34 miBottom 24%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Bottom 38%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year11.4%Bottom 32%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Beech FactoryBEC34 mi8,001 ft
Wichita Dwight D Eisenhower NtlICT38 mi10,302 ft
Enid Woodring RgnlWDG75 mi8,613 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
47
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—

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Other cities in Arkansas City-Winfield, KS

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
Arkansas CityCowley County11,88441Arkansas City vs Winfield

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 Winfield side by side with a similar place.

Winfield vs ClintonWinfield vs Wilson

Moving to Winfield 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
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
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
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
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
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 Winfield

2 ZIP areas

Every ZIP area in Winfield 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 Winfield 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
6715614,513$58,821$153,30046
67019992$60,833$92,000—