Baker County, OR
County Profile
16,840 residents. Jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Baker County, OR.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 14 sourcesUnemployment is 5.6% and median household income $60,936, putting employment conditions in the middle range of counties measured.
Public schools test above most of the state: 45% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 5% of published profiles for schools.
41 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 5% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.
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 of 5.6% — higher than in all but 11% of the 1,467 measured US counties.
Employment grew 0.9% over the past year, to 6,499 employed residents.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsfiling years 2022–2023 | $59,172 | 51st percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftfiling years 2022–2023 | $46,289 | 12th percentileof 1,417 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$5,4322024 ACS 5-Year | $60,936 | Bottom 38%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$2,2292024 ACS 5-Year | $34,492 | Bottom 48%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per-capita personal income2023 | $52,908 | Bottom 37%of 1,389 | 2023 |
| Poverty rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 15.3% | Bottom 35%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±1.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 16.6 min | Top 5%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 26.1% | Top 34%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 71.9% | 20th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentJuly 2026 | 6,499 | Bottom 5%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)July 2026 | +2.0% | Top 27%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)July 2026 | +0.9% | Top 22%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceJuly 2026 | 6,885 | 5th percentileof 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 68.7% | Bottom 22%of 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.2% | 46th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026 | −0.2% | Top 47%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateJuly 2026 | 5.6% | Bottom 11%of 1,467 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 9.8% | 60th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Unemployment rate
Median household income, successive ACS releases
45% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 68% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 14.1 students for every full-time teacher across 10 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baker Early College · charter | Baker SD 5J | 534 | — | 57% | 92% |
| Baker High School | Baker SD 5J | 478 | 16.5 | 37% | 72% |
| South Baker Intermediate School | Baker SD 5J | 268 | 15.8 | 42% | 48% |
| Brooklyn Primary School | Baker SD 5J | 249 | 13.8 | 37% | 42% |
| Baker Middle School | Baker SD 5J | 226 | 16.1 | 36% | 53% |
| Pine Eagle Charter School · charter | Pine Eagle SD 61 | 213 | 11.8 | 47% | 67% |
| Haines Elementary School | Baker SD 5J | 140 | 15.6 | 67% | 77% |
| Baker Early Learning Center | Baker SD 5J | 97 | 13.9 | — | — |
| Huntington School · charter | Huntington SD 16J | 82 | 8.2 | 25% | 55% |
| Burnt River School · charter | Burnt River SD 30J | 55 | 9.2 | — | — |
| Keating Elementary School | Baker SD 5J | 26 | 13.0 | — | — |
| Oregon International School · charter | Baker SD 5J | 0 | — | — | — |
78.7% 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 Oregon’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 Oregon is up 36% over five years, and up 3.0% 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 $2,239 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.78% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,047, some 21% above the $865 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,047 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $41,900 a year, about 69% of the median household income here of $60,936.
The typical renter household here spends 25% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $865 a month.
A median home at $285,600 costs 3.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $72,414, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.
The figures above are measured against Baker County’s median household income of $60,936, 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 Oregon’s figure2026 Q2 | +3.0% | 37th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Oregon’s figure2026 Q2 | +35.6% | 18th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Oregon’s figure2026 Q2 | +105.2% | 69th percentileof 1,431 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year | 3.9 | Bottom 12%of 3,217 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 71.5% | 35th percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±432024 ACS 5-Year | 8,725 | 38th percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $898 | Top 42%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $1,456 | Top 43%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,047 | Top 33%of 1,423 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$432024 ACS 5-Year | $865 | Top 49%of 3,215 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$16,2482024 ACS 5-Year | $285,600 | 78th percentileof 3,219 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$1362024 ACS 5-Year | $2,239 | 71st percentileof 3,172 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$4,7652024 ACS 5-Year | $72,414 | Bottom 40%of 3,218 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.07%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.78% | 49th percentileof 3,126 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 24.5% | Top 23%of 3,216 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±1702024 ACS 5-Year | 843 | 71st percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 9.7% | 80th percentileof 3,222 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 6.0% | 25th percentileof 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±1922024 ACS 5-Year | 1,370 | 41st percentileof 3,222 | 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.
Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 16,750 in 2024.
Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 44 units authorized in 2025, up 57% on the prior year.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 41 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.
Federal tax returns show Baker County lost about 0.3% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $59,172, above the $46,289 of households that moved out.
At 2.4 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US counties.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Canyon County, ID 68 people · 10% of arrivals
- Union County, OR 61 people · 9.1% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Union County, OR 86 people · 12% of departures
- Ada County, ID 72 people · 10% of departures
- Canyon County, ID 44 people · 6.2% 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. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
4 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 88°F and January a low of 20°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 9.1 inches.
Air quality measures a median index of 28, in the Good band, and about 3 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| 90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year | 63 | 2024 calendar year |
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 9.1" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 20°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 88°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 4 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year | 3 | 2024 calendar year |
| Median air quality index2024 calendar year | 28 | 2024 calendar year |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 40°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Air quality
A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and avalanche, with inland flooding alone responsible for 40% of it. Inland flooding is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, inland flooding, hail, lightning, ice storm, volcanic activity, cold wave, drought, strong wind, tornado, tsunami, hurricane, coastal flooding.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). These are FEMA’s own figures for this county rather than a value derived from surrounding geographies. 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.
- 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.
- 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
No airport meeting the AreaProfile major-airport definition lies within 100 miles; the nearest is 107 miles away.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 87.8% | Top 43%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 107 mi | Bottom 2%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 0 | Bottom 1%of 1,463 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 9.4% | Top 43%of 3,221 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boise Air Trml/Gowen Fld | BOI | 107 mi | 10,000 ft |
| Grant County Intl | MWH | 190 mi | 13,503 ft |
| Spokane Intl | GEG | 202 mi | 8,199 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 |
| Income | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional price parities and county personal income | 2023 |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | 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 |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| 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 |
| Climate | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System Daily Air Quality Index by county | 2024 calendar year |
| 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.