Minden, LA

Micro Area Profile

35,820 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Minden, LA micropolitan area.

36out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 1% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
Opportunity789th of 835 metro and micro areas measured20
Schools618th of 695 metro and micro areas measured18
Growth810th of 834 metro and micro areas measured13
Housing affordability757th of 835 metro and micro areas measured53
ClimateTop 40% of 835 metro and micro areas measured70
Physical resilience541st of 835 metro and micro areas measured44
AccessTop 48% of 835 metro and micro areas measured79
Economic stability827th of 835 metro and micro areas measured4
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable metro and micro areas measured: unemployment is 5.1% and the Opportunity signal places Minden in the bottom 6%.

In the public schools here, 57% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 15.5 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 32 units authorized over the past twelve months, 50% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

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
35,820
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$41,182
Bottom 2% nationally
Density
60/sq mi
593.3 sq mi of land
Median age
41.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Louisiana
Nearest major airport
SHV
35 mi · Shreveport Rgnl
Median home value
$114,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 5.1% — higher than in all but 21% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment fell 1.0% over the past year, to 12,740 employed residents.

Median household income of $41,182 is lower than in 98% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$1,4102024 ACS 5-Year$41,182Bottom 2%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,7172024 ACS 5-Year$25,664Bottom 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year22.5%Bottom 5%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year28.3 minBottom 15%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year13.3%Bottom 2%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year81.1%82nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202612,740Bottom 8%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−1.9%Bottom 29%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−1.0%Bottom 44%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202613,4208th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year63.4%Bottom 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year0.4%51st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.2%Top 48%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20265.1%Bottom 21%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year6.2%23rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/076.33.5
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 5.1% 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.

57% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 65% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 15.5 students for every full-time teacher across 14 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
14
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
15.5
across all schools here
Math proficiency
56.7%
Bottom 13% in Louisiana
Reading proficiency
65.2%
Bottom 13% in Louisiana
The 12 largest of 14 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Minden High SchoolWebster Parish68914.150%62%
Lakeside Junior-Senior High SchoolWebster Parish54617.159%84%
Webster Junior High SchoolWebster Parish46114.053%58%
J. A. Phillips Elementary SchoolWebster Parish42914.8——
Central Elementary SchoolWebster Parish42718.668%69%
North Webster High SchoolWebster Parish42114.562%62%
Doyline High SchoolWebster Parish38515.458%66%
North Webster Junior High SchoolWebster Parish32014.555%66%
J. L. Jones Elementary SchoolWebster Parish31818.758%56%
E. S. Richardson Elementary SchoolWebster Parish27517.245%58%
Browning Elementary SchoolWebster Parish25215.8——
Brown Upper Elementary SchoolWebster Parish18614.353%61%

72.5% 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 Louisiana’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $412 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.36% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $854, close to the $795 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $854 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $34,200 a year, about 83% of the median household income here of $41,182.

The typical renter household here spends 41% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $795 a month.

A median home at $114,500 costs 2.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $53,574, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
40.9%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.1×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$854
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$795
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$114,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Minden’s median household income of $41,182, 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 to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year2.1Top 19%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year66.8%32nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±382024 ACS 5-Year18,37722nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$651Top 2%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,130Top 4%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$854Top 3%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$292024 ACS 5-Year$795Top 12%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$8,3232024 ACS 5-Year$114,5004th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$552024 ACS 5-Year$4121st percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$3,7442024 ACS 5-Year$53,574Bottom 3%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.05%2024 ACS 5-Year0.36%4th percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year40.9%Bottom 1%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1452024 ACS 5-Year30122nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.6%45th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year20.4%99th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3792024 ACS 5-Year4,04345th percentileof 9352024 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

13/ 100
Ranks 810 of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

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 5% since 2020, to 35,184 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 32 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

At 0.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
32
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.9
Bottom 16% nationally
Year over year
−50%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202437k35k
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 falling for the last 4 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 95°F and January a low of 39°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 48.9 inches.

30°50°70°90°110°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station SHREVEPORT DWTN AP, 27.0 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.8"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals48.9"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals39°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals95°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals37°F1991-2020 Normals

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

Physical risk

44 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and ice storm, with inland flooding alone responsible for 38% 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.

Ice stormHigh
Strong windElevated
HailElevated
HurricaneModerate
EarthquakeModerate
LightningModerate
Winter weatherModerate
LandslideModerate
Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: heat wave, tornado, inland flooding, drought, wildfire, avalanche, coastal flooding, tsunami, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

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.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
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

2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Shreveport Rgnl at 35 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year66.1%Bottom 1%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle35 miTop 40%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle2Bottom 16%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year28.9%Bottom 1%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Shreveport RgnlSHV35 mi8,348 ft
East Texas RgnlGGG83 mi10,000 ft
Alexandria IntlAEX108 mi9,352 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
36
Your Score
—

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

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
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
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
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
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.

Cities in this metro