St. George, UT

Metro Area Profile

196,431 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the St. George, UT metropolitan area.

62out of 100
Area Score
Top 34% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 12 sources
OpportunityTop 11% of 835 metro and micro areas measured75
GrowthTop 1% of 834 metro and micro areas measured92
Housing affordability803rd of 835 metro and micro areas measured43
ClimateTop 47% of 835 metro and micro areas measured68
Physical resilience756th of 835 metro and micro areas measured20
AccessTop 23% of 835 metro and micro areas measured91
Economic stabilityTop 27% of 835 metro and micro areas measured71
The quick read

St. George ranks in the top 11% of metro and micro areas measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.8% and median household income of $80,632.

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 3,094 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 19% on the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most metro and micro areas measured: rent takes 33% of renter income and the median home is 5.2 times what its owners earn.

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
196,431
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$80,632
Top 17% nationally
Density
81/sq mi
2,427.6 sq mi of land
Median age
39.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Metropolitan area
Utah
Nearest major airport
SGU
16 mi · St George Rgnl
Median home value
$510,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.8%, lower than in 64% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment grew 0.1% over the past year, to 90,652 employed residents.

35% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 80% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$3,6442024 ACS 5-Year$80,632Top 17%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,3732024 ACS 5-Year$39,171Top 31%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year8.7%Top 12%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year20.2 minTop 14%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year35.2%Top 20%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year71.6%18th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202690,652Top 28%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+5.2%Top 6%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+0.1%Top 35%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202694,18572nd percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year75.3%Bottom 42%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage2025 OEWS$55,920Bottom 23%of 3922025 OEWS
Median annual wage2025 OEWS$45,140Bottom 23%of 3922025 OEWS
Metro employment2025 OEWS90,50044th percentileof 3922025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.2%2024 ACS 5-Year0.5%59th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.1%Bottom 33%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20263.8%Top 36%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year14.0%85th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/074.02.2
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.8% in July 2026. It has been holding roughly steady, 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.

Largest occupations — St. George, UT

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers3,460$28,270
Retail Salespersons3,050$33,150
Office Clerks, General2,560$44,880
General and Operations Managers2,050$82,850
Stockers and Order Fillers1,950$36,940
Registered Nurses1,910$86,380

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

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.

45% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 49% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 21.9 students for every full-time teacher across 58 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
62
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
21.9
across 58 of them
Math proficiency
44.8%
Reading proficiency
49.3%
The 12 largest of 62 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Crimson Cliffs HighWashington District1,40126.9——
Snow Canyon HighWashington District1,32424.527%48%
Dixie HighWashington District1,26324.332%49%
Desert Hills HighWashington District1,24127.056%58%
Hurricane HighWashington District1,17726.830%49%
Pine View HighWashington District1,12422.530%53%
Vista School · charterVista School1,11421.441%50%
George Washington Academy · charterGeorge Washington Academy1,01323.068%69%
Crimson Cliffs MiddleWashington District93323.971%53%
Washington Fields IntermediateWashington District91324.7——
Desert Hills MiddleWashington District90924.655%53%
Dixie MiddleWashington District84426.447%40%

31.5% 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 Utah’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 3% below the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 96.7, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for this area is up 30% over five years, but down 0.1% 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 $2,158 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.42% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,575, close to the $1,566 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,575 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $63,000 a year, about 78% of the median household income here of $80,632.

The typical renter household here spends 33% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,566 a month.

A median home at $510,700 costs 5.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $97,759, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Cost of living
96.7

Prices here run about 3% below the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Price level for all consumption in this metropolitan area against a national average of 100. Housing dominates the spread between places; goods vary far less.

Rent as a share of income
33.4%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,575
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,566
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$510,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against St. George’s median household income of $80,632, 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
Cost of living index202396.7Bottom 32%of 3862023
Home price change (1 year)2026 Q2−0.1%11th percentileof 3722026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)2026 Q2+29.6%14th percentileof 3722026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)2026 Q2+114.5%81st percentileof 3722026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year5.2Bottom 5%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year71.6%61st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±702024 ACS 5-Year82,18973rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,218Bottom 18%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$2,072Bottom 15%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,575Bottom 15%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$562024 ACS 5-Year$1,566Bottom 7%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$14,7802024 ACS 5-Year$510,70094th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$492024 ACS 5-Year$2,15856th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$3,6262024 ACS 5-Year$97,759Top 18%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.02%2024 ACS 5-Year0.42%7th percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year33.4%Bottom 8%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±7802024 ACS 5-Year8,31589th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year10.1%86th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year5.0%17th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±8972024 ACS 5-Year12,40378th 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 and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

92/ 100
Top 1% of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was downward, 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 14% since 2020, reaching 207,943 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 3,094 units permitted over the past twelve months, only 18% are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 15.8 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
3,094
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
15.8
Top 1% nationally
Year over year
+19%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
18.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

20202021202220232024208k182k
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

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 28°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 14.2 inches, including 10.8 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 VEYO POWERHOUSE, 11.6 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND2.1"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals14.2"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals10.8"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals28°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals92°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals41°F1991-2020 Normals

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

Physical risk

20 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are wildfire, inland flooding and lightning, with wildfire alone responsible for 46% of it. Lightning is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

WildfireHigh
Inland floodingModerate
EarthquakeModerate

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

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.
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. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. 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 St George Rgnl at 16 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year93.1%Top 7%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle16 miTop 20%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle2Bottom 16%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year4.2%Top 6%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
St George RgnlSGU16 mi9,300 ft
Cedar City RgnlCDC37 mi8,653 ft
Grand Canyon Ntl ParkGCN117 mi8,999 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
62
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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
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
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
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.