38655 — Oxford, Mississippi
Area Profile
Income, jobs, climate, physical risk and development data for ZIP code 38655. Its median home value runs 12% below Oxford as a whole, which is why this ZIP carries a profile of its own.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 12 sources38655 ranks in the top 2% of ZIP areas measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 2.8% and median household income of $68,235. The unemployment rate is published for Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, rather than for 38655 alone.
Public schools test above most of the state: 65% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 7% of published profiles for schools.
295 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 10% of the prior year — steady rather than turning. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, rather than for 38655 alone.
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
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment across Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, is 2.8%, lower than in 97% of the 3,127 measured US ZIP areas.
Employment across Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, grew 6.4% over the past year, to 13,550 employed residents.
51% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 88% of measured US ZIP areas.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsLafayette County, MS’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $66,925 | 48th percentileof 2,996 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftLafayette County, MS’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $55,280 | 20th percentileof 2,996 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$5,8482024 ACS 5-Year | $68,235 | Bottom 44%of 31,049 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$3,2192024 ACS 5-Year | $41,492 | Top 35%of 32,822 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 11.8% | Bottom 42%of 32,846 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±1.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 23.0 min | Top 24%of 32,887 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 51.1% | Top 12%of 33,193 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 79.3% | 63rd percentileof 32,798 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentOxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | 13,550 | Bottom 7%of 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)Oxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | +10.2% | Top 1%of 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)Oxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | +6.4% | Top 1%of 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceOxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | 13,945 | 7th percentileof 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 79.5% | Top 45%of 32,883 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.0% | 80th percentileof 32,798 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)Oxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | −0.8% | Top 15%of 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateOxford, MS’s figureJuly 2026 | 2.8% | Top 3%of 3,127 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 8.9% | 46th percentileof 32,798 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Median household income, successive ACS releases
The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish labor-force data for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Oxford, MS, the city containing this ZIP code.
65% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 55% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 13.9 students for every full-time teacher across 11 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford High School | Oxford School District | 1,335 | 15.0 | 51% | 54% |
| Lafayette High School | Lafayette County | 855 | 12.4 | 72% | 53% |
| Lafayette Upper Elementary School | Lafayette County | 803 | 14.1 | 62% | 56% |
| Lafayette Elementary School | Lafayette County | 776 | 15.5 | — | — |
| Bramlett Elementary School | Oxford School District | 715 | 15.2 | — | — |
| Central Elementary School | Oxford School District | 709 | 14.5 | — | — |
| Della Davidson Elementary School | Oxford School District | 704 | 12.8 | 83% | 69% |
| Oxford Middle School | Oxford School District | 667 | 13.3 | 70% | 54% |
| Lafayette Middle School | Lafayette County | 420 | 10.8 | 63% | 47% |
| Oxford Intermediate School | Oxford School District | 356 | 14.2 | 67% | 51% |
| Oxford Early Childhood Center | Oxford School District | 277 | 14.6 | — | — |
| Oxf/laf School of Applied Tech | Lafayette County | 0 | — | — | — |
48.6% 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.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Mississippi is up 40% over five years, and up 4.2% 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 $1,990 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.59% 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 14% above the $1,090 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 73% of the median household income here of $68,235.
The typical renter household here spends 32% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,090 a month.
A median home at $340,000 costs 3.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $106,457, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.
The figures above are measured against 38655’s median household income of $68,235, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Mississippi’s figure2026 Q2 | +4.2% | 71st percentileof 3,071 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Mississippi’s figure2026 Q2 | +40.4% | 39th percentileof 3,071 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Mississippi’s figure2026 Q2 | +66.8% | 9th percentileof 3,071 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year | 3.2 | Bottom 34%of 29,275 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 60.4% | 16th percentileof 32,750 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±3872024 ACS 5-Year | 25,415 | 99th percentileof 33,460 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $1,053 | Top 34%of 3,031 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $1,539 | Top 26%of 3,031 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,243 | Top 32%of 3,031 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$632024 ACS 5-Year | $1,090 | Bottom 43%of 26,396 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$18,4682024 ACS 5-Year | $340,000 | 73rd percentileof 30,812 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$2152024 ACS 5-Year | $1,990 | 51st percentileof 28,935 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$4,5522024 ACS 5-Year | $106,457 | Top 25%of 29,802 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.07%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.59% | 21st percentileof 24,099 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 32.1% | Bottom 29%of 26,247 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±5132024 ACS 5-Year | 4,181 | 99th percentileof 33,772 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 16.5% | 87th percentileof 32,961 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 17.9% | 88th percentileof 32,788 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±5402024 ACS 5-Year | 8,730 | 99th percentileof 33,772 | 2024 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.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
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.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 295 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes. The multifamily share is published for Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, rather than for 38655 alone.
At 11.2 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US ZIP areas. The permit rate is published for Oxford, MS, which contains 38655, rather than for 38655 alone.
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Panola County, MS 208 people · 6.6% of arrivals
- Shelby County, TN 168 people · 5.4% of arrivals
- Yalobusha County, MS 159 people · 5.1% of arrivals
- DeSoto County, MS 141 people · 4.5% of arrivals
- Lee County, MS 97 people · 3.1% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Panola County, MS 213 people · 7.3% of departures
- DeSoto County, MS 152 people · 5.2% of departures
- Yalobusha County, MS 129 people · 4.4% of departures
- Shelby County, TN 129 people · 4.4% of departures
- Lee County, MS 104 people · 3.6% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Lafayette County, MS. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
The Building Permits Survey is not published for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Oxford, MS, the city containing this ZIP code.
Weather & climate
6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 91°F and January a low of 31°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 60.5 inches, including 1.2 inches of snow.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 60.5" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals | 1.2" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 31°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 91°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 6 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 39°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and earthquake, with inland flooding alone responsible for 25% 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 89% of measured US ZIP areas.
Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, heat wave, hurricane, strong wind, ice storm, wildfire, 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. ZIP values are the land-area-weighted mean of the counties the ZIP Code Tabulation Area intersects. Expected annual loss is not allocated below county level. 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. A ZIP area is not a jurisdiction, so no department reports for one. Oxford carries the figure where its 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, and no county figure could be attached to this page.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
- 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
4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Tunica Muni at 55 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 92.2% | Top 35%of 32,663 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 55 mi | Bottom 11%of 3,127 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 4 | Bottom 40%of 3,127 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.7% | Top 24%of 32,663 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tunica Muni | UTA | 55 mi | 8,500 ft |
| Frederick W Smith Intl/Memphis | MEM | 57 mi | 11,120 ft |
| Millington/Memphis | NQA | 74 mi | 8,001 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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Similar places
Matched on AreaProfile signals, not geographyData & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA 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.
38655 vs Oxford
How this ZIP area compares with Oxford as a whole. Both figures come from the same ACS release, so the comparison is like for like — a gap here is a real difference between the two places, not two surveys disagreeing.
Some demographic statistics use Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, which approximate but do not exactly match USPS ZIP delivery geography. See the methodology for how AreaProfile maps between them.