AreaProfile

Tucson, AZ

Metro Area Profile

1,060,490 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Tucson, AZ metropolitan area.

47
Area Score
Bottom 5% of 361 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity341st of 361 published metros29
GrowthTop 45% of 440 published metros54
Housing affordability328th of 441 published metros76
Climate254th of 441 published metros64
Physical resilience406th of 441 published metros18
Access290th of 441 published metros73
Economic stability293rd of 441 published metros47
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable published metro profiles: unemployment is 5.7% and the Opportunity signal places Tucson in the bottom 6%.

Physical-risk exposure is above the national median, driven mainly by inland flooding, wildfire and avalanche.

Its Area Score of 47 places Tucson in the top 95% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
1,060,490
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$70,315
Top 40% nationally
Density
115/sq mi
9188.7 sq mi of land
Median age
39.8
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Tucson, AZ
Nearest major airport
TUS
49 mi · Tucson Intl
Median home value
$319,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 5.7% is lower than 9% of the 361 measured US metros.

Employment fell 4.8% over the past year, to 453,367 employed residents.

37% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 84% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$1,089$70,315Top 40%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$509$40,140Top 27%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate14.3%Top 44%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute26.0 minTop 30%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher36.8%Top 16%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment453,367Top 16%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-4.0%Bottom 8%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-4.8%Bottom 4%June 2026
Labor force480,847Top 15%June 2026
Labor force participation58.0%Bottom 35%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$63,200Top 37%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$47,760Bottom 48%2025 OEWS
Metro employment389,630Top 18%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)1.1%Top 2%June 2026
Unemployment rate5.7%Top 9%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/066.03.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 5.7% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Tucson, AZ
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
General and Operations Managers12,130$83,610
Retail Salespersons11,100$34,530
Home Health and Personal Care Aides11,030$34,420
Registered Nurses10,120$94,110
Fast Food and Counter Workers9,980$31,690
Cashiers9,610$32,780

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 $1,212 takes 21% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 4.5 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
20.7%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
4.5×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,212
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$319,700
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income4.55Top 19%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate65.2%Bottom 24%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±359479,939Top 5%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$14$1,212Top 22%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$3,338$319,700Top 22%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income20.7%Top 23%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate8.8%Bottom 30%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
54/ 100
Top 45% 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 3% since 2020, reaching 1,080,149 in 2024.

At 4.5 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
4,790
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
4.5
Top 37% nationally
Year over year
+5%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
23.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320241080k1045k
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

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 99°F and January a low of 41°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 11.1 inches.

30°50°70°90°110°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station TUCSON 11 W, 36.7 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND2.2"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation11.1"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low41°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high99°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing34°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

18 / 100
Physical resilience

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

WildfireElevated
Inland floodingHigh
AvalancheModerate

Low or minimal exposure: heat wave, lightning, hail, earthquake, strong wind, winter weather, drought, landslide, tornado, 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

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 49 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Tucson IntlTUS49 mi10,996 ft
Mesa GatewayIWA82 mi10,401 ft
Phoenix Sky Harbor IntlPHX91 mi11,489 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
47
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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.