Oxford, MS

Micro Area Profile

70,746 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Oxford, MS micropolitan area.

78out of 100
Area Score
Top 1% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
OpportunityTop 5% of 835 metro and micro areas measured81
SchoolsTop 2% of 695 metro and micro areas measured92
GrowthTop 3% of 834 metro and micro areas measured83
Housing affordability554th of 835 metro and micro areas measured70
ClimateTop 21% of 835 metro and micro areas measured75
Physical resilienceTop 13% of 835 metro and micro areas measured81
Access522nd of 835 metro and micro areas measured71
Economic stability584th of 835 metro and micro areas measured34
The quick read

Oxford ranks in the top 5% of metro and micro areas measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.4% and median household income of $65,018.

Public schools test above most of the state: 58% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 2% of published profiles for schools.

553 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 5% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

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
70,746
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$65,018
Bottom 43% nationally
Density
64/sq mi
1,098.8 sq mi of land
Median age
32.6
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Mississippi
Nearest major airport
UTA
54 mi · Tunica Muni
Median home value
$256,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.4%, lower than in 80% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment grew 5.4% over the past year, to 33,006 employed residents.

40% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 89% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$2,8982024 ACS 5-Year$65,018Bottom 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$2,2942024 ACS 5-Year$34,771Bottom 45%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year13.8%Bottom 41%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.3 min2024 ACS 5-Year24.8 minBottom 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year40.1%Top 11%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year78.9%64th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202633,006Bottom 45%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+10.8%Top 1%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+5.4%Top 1%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202634,18144th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year76.0%Bottom 47%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year0.8%76th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.9%Top 15%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20263.4%Top 20%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year8.5%47th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/076.01.7
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.4% in July 2026. It has been rising for the last 3 months, 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.

58% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 51% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 13.6 students for every full-time teacher across 15 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
16
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
13.6
across 15 of them
Math proficiency
58.1%
Top 1% in Mississippi
Reading proficiency
51.3%
Top 5% in Mississippi
The 12 largest of 16 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Oxford High SchoolOxford School District1,33515.051%54%
Lafayette High SchoolLafayette County85512.472%53%
Lafayette Upper Elementary SchoolLafayette County80314.162%56%
Lafayette Elementary SchoolLafayette County77615.5——
Bramlett Elementary SchoolOxford School District71515.2——
Central Elementary SchoolOxford School District70914.5——
Della Davidson Elementary SchoolOxford School District70412.883%69%
Oxford Middle SchoolOxford School District66713.370%54%
Davidson Elementary SchoolWater Valley School District59916.631%43%
Lafayette Middle SchoolLafayette County42010.863%47%
Water Valley High SchoolWater Valley School District39810.833%35%
Oxford Intermediate SchoolOxford School District35614.267%51%

53.4% 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 Mississippi’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 $1,406 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.55% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,243, some 21% above the $1,025 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,243 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $49,700 a year, about 76% of the median household income here of $65,018.

The typical renter household here spends 31% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,025 a month.

A median home at $256,900 costs 2.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $87,347, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
31.3%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.9×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,243
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,025
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$256,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Oxford’s median household income of $65,018, 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 ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year2.9Bottom 35%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year64.9%22nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±622024 ACS 5-Year35,21849th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,053Bottom 30%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,539Bottom 41%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,243Bottom 34%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$652024 ACS 5-Year$1,025Bottom 42%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$16,9352024 ACS 5-Year$256,90066th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$902024 ACS 5-Year$1,40630th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$8,0022024 ACS 5-Year$87,347Top 37%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.05%2024 ACS 5-Year0.55%20th percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year31.3%Bottom 21%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±6522024 ACS 5-Year5,31684th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year15.1%93rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year16.6%97th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±6462024 ACS 5-Year11,17876th 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

83/ 100
Top 3% of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was broadly flat, 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 grown 6% since 2020, reaching 72,301 in 2024.

Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 72,301 residents in 2024, up 0.7% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 553 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

At 7.8 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
553
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
7.8
Top 10% nationally
Year over year
+5%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202472k68k
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 rising for the last 4 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 90°F and January a low of 30°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 58.6 inches, including 1.2 inches of snow.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station WATER VALLEY, 5.1 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND6.3"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals58.6"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals1.2"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals30°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals90°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals39°F1991-2020 Normals

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

Physical risk

81 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and tornado, with inland flooding 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.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 87% of measured US metro and micro areas.

EarthquakeElevated
LandslideModerate
LightningModerate
TornadoElevated
HurricaneModerate

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

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

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Tunica Muni at 54 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year89.5%Top 39%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle54 miBottom 33%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle5Top 26%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year7.2%Top 34%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Tunica MuniUTA54 mi8,500 ft
Frederick W Smith Intl/MemphisMEM61 mi11,120 ft
Golden Triangle RgnlGTR78 mi8,003 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
78
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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.

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