AreaProfile

Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ

Metro Area Profile

5,028,754 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ metropolitan area.

58
Area Score
Bottom 26% of 361 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity278th of 361 published metros43
GrowthTop 36% of 440 published metros59
Housing affordability387th of 441 published metros66
Climate350th of 441 published metros59
Physical resilience292nd of 441 published metros44
AccessTop 24% of 441 published metros95
Economic stabilityTop 27% of 441 published metros75
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable published metro profiles: unemployment is 4.9% and the Opportunity signal places Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler in the bottom 23%.

Residential permitting has slowed: 34,635 units authorized over the past twelve months, 17% below the prior year.

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most published city profiles, with rent taking 23% of median household income.

At a glance

Population
5,028,754
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$88,301
Top 9% nationally
Density
345/sq mi
14568.7 sq mi of land
Median age
37.9
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
Nearest major airport
PHX
17 mi · Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl
Median home value
$440,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.9% is lower than 24% of the 361 measured US metros.

Employment fell 3.9% over the past year, to 2,536,406 employed residents.

35% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 81% of measured US metros.

Household income is higher than at least 91% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$521$88,301Top 9%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$283$45,239Top 13%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate11.0%Bottom 24%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute28.4 minTop 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher35.3%Top 19%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment2,536,406Top 3%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-1.0%Bottom 29%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-3.9%Bottom 5%June 2026
Labor force2,666,897Top 3%June 2026
Labor force participation64.0%Top 24%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$69,630Top 16%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$51,380Top 21%2025 OEWS
Metro employment2,375,760Top 3%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.9%Top 5%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.9%Top 24%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/065.52.8
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.9% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
General and Operations Managers81,520$98,610
Retail Salespersons69,060$35,960
Customer Service Representatives68,930$46,410
Home Health and Personal Care Aides57,940$36,930
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand56,420$44,950
Fast Food and Counter Workers54,900$34,540

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.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,702 takes 23% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 5.0 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
23.1%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.0×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,702
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$440,900
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income4.99Top 13%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate66.6%Bottom 30%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4422,068,985Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$8$1,702Top 5%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$1,457$440,900Top 9%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income23.1%Top 7%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate8.5%Bottom 28%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
59/ 100
Top 36% of 440 published city profiles
Permitting is decreasing, measured 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 5,186,958 in 2024.

At 6.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
35K
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.9
Top 20% nationally
Year over year
−17%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
33.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320245187k4876k
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.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 107°F and January a low of 46°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 7.2 inches.

30°50°70°90°110°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station PHOENIX SKY HARBOR INTL AP, 17.1 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND0.9"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation7.2"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low46°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high107°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing40°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

44 / 100
Physical resilience

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

Heat waveModerate
Inland floodingElevated
WildfireModerate
HailModerate
LandslideModerate
AvalancheModerate

Low or minimal exposure: drought, strong wind, lightning, earthquake, tornado, winter weather, hurricane, cold wave.

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.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

6 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 17 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Phoenix Sky Harbor IntlPHX17 mi11,489 ft
Phoenix GoodyearGYR24 mi8,500 ft
Mesa GatewayIWA25 mi10,401 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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58
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 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 browse every source.