AreaProfile

Salt Lake City-Murray, UT

Metro Area Profile

1,275,870 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metropolitan area.

69
Area Score
Top 36% of 99 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 12% of 99 published metros81
GrowthTop 12% of 99 published metros71
Housing affordability70th of 99 published metros73
Climate98th of 99 published metros49
Physical resilience53rd of 99 published metros55
Access86th of 99 published metros71
Economic stabilityTop 1% of 99 published metros98
The quick read

Salt Lake City-Murray ranks in the top 12% of published metro profiles for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.6% and median household income of $98,083.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 7,755 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 20% on the prior year.

Its Area Score of 69 places Salt Lake City-Murray in the top 36% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
1,275,870
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$98,083
Top 4% nationally
Density
164/sq mi
7793.1 sq mi of land
Median age
33.9
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Salt Lake City-Murray, UT
Nearest major airport
SLC
53 mi · Salt Lake City Intl
Median home value
$515,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.6% is lower than 83% of the 99 measured US metros.

Employment grew 0.0% over the past year, to 717,788 employed residents.

38% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 86% of measured US metros.

Household income is higher than at least 96% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$1,249$98,083Top 4%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$486$44,702Top 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate8.0%Bottom 3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute24.6 minTop 44%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher38.4%Top 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment717,788Top 43%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)1.4%Top 38%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)0.0%Top 24%June 2026
Labor force744,745Top 43%June 2026
Labor force participation72.2%Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$71,660Top 22%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$55,240Top 19%2025 OEWS
Metro employment826,210Top 37%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.2%Bottom 40%June 2026
Unemployment rate3.6%Bottom 17%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/063.91.9
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.6% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Salt Lake City-Murray, UT
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Customer Service Representatives26,620$45,410
General and Operations Managers20,870$103,710
Retail Salespersons20,330$34,420
Fast Food and Counter Workers19,590$29,070
Software Developers19,040$129,600
Office Clerks, General16,260$45,220

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 $1,583 takes 19% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 5.3 times median household income here, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
19.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.3×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,583
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$515,400
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income5.25Top 11%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate67.0%Bottom 32%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±174474,627Top 6%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$17$1,583Top 7%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$5,214$515,400Top 6%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income19.4%Top 36%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate5.2%Bottom 3%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
71/ 100
Top 12% of 99 published city profiles
Permitting is increasing, 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 3% since 2020, reaching 1,300,762 in 2024.

At 6.1 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
7,755
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.1
Top 28% nationally
Year over year
+20%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
57.4%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320241301k1260k
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

4 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 97°F and January a low of 21°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 6.4 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°110°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station GRANITE PEAK DUGWAY PG, 35.3 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND0.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation6.4"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low21°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high97°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months41991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing53°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

55 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are earthquake, wildfire and avalanche.

EarthquakeModerate
WildfireElevated
AvalancheModerate

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

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

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 53 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Salt Lake City IntlSLC53 mi12,002 ft
WendoverENV57 mi10,002 ft
Ogden-HinckleyOGD65 mi8,107 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
69
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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.