97501Medford, Oregon

Area Profile

Income, jobs, climate, physical risk and development data for ZIP code 97501.

51out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 18% of 5,298 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity4311th of 6,210 published ZIP areas46
Schools3307th of 4,422 published ZIP areas32
GrowthTop 21% of 5,428 published ZIP areas66
Housing affordability5269th of 6,685 published ZIP areas59
ClimateTop 44% of 6,789 published ZIP areas71
Physical resilience5302nd of 6,709 published ZIP areas25
Access3884th of 6,791 published ZIP areas90
Economic stability3959th of 6,742 published ZIP areas55
The quick read

Development activity is both elevated and accelerating — 595 housing units permitted over the past twelve months, up 43% on the prior year.

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

A major airport is 6 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

At a glance

Population
44,670
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$63,977
Bottom 37% nationally
Density
985/sq mi
45.3 sq mi of land
Median age
37.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
City
Medford
Oregon
Metro area
Medford, OR
Nearest major airport
MFR
6 mi · Rogue Valley Intl/Medford
Median home value
$353,800
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 6.4% is lower than 6% of the 6,544 measured US ZIP areas.

Employment grew 0.9% over the past year, to 40,918 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$4,073$63,977Bottom 37%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,934$32,026Bottom 34%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate15.7%Top 29%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute19.2 minBottom 11%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher20.7%Bottom 43%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment40,918Bottom 41%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)2.9%Top 15%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)0.9%Top 14%June 2026
Labor force43,715Bottom 41%June 2026
Labor force participation65.5%Top 31%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$63,850Bottom 32%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$49,900Bottom 45%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.3%Top 37%June 2026
Unemployment rate6.4%Top 6%June 2026
Median household income, successive ACS releases
202120222023202464k53k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $63,977 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.
Largest occupations — Medford, OR
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers3,210$34,140
Home Health and Personal Care Aides3,000$44,950
Retail Salespersons2,840$35,840
Registered Nurses2,370$127,030
Cashiers2,060$34,390
Stockers and Order Fillers1,890$39,120

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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish labor-force data for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Medford, OR, the city containing this ZIP code.

18% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 44% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 20.2 students for every full-time teacher, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
12
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
20.2
across all schools here
Math proficiency
18.5%
Bottom 24% in Oregon
Reading proficiency
44.1%
Top 48% in Oregon
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
South Medford High SchoolMedford SD 549C1,85623.8
North Medford High SchoolMedford SD 549C1,72124.2
Logos Charter School · charterMedford SD 549C1,28520.170%
McLoughlin Middle SchoolMedford SD 549C82620.112%
Oakdale Middle SchoolMedford SD 549C74519.1
Kids Unlimited Academy · charterMedford SD 549C50516.315%25%
Griffin Creek Elementary SchoolMedford SD 549C49218.937%35%
Oak Grove Elementary SchoolMedford SD 549C39818.112%22%
Jefferson Elementary SchoolMedford SD 549C38117.325%47%
Innovation AcademyMedford SD 549C32714.9
Howard Elementary SchoolMedford SD 549C27516.215%30%
Washington Elementary SchoolMedford SD 549C22115.815%15%

83.6% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with rather than how the schools perform, which is why AreaProfile shows it and does not score it.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data. Schools are placed by ZIP code, so this is which schools are in this place rather than which one a particular address is zoned for — district boundaries do not follow municipal ones, and enrollment zones change. Fully virtual schools are excluded: they enroll students from across the state while reporting one administrative address, and counting them here would describe a school population this place does not have. The assessment covers grades 3 through 8, so a high school shows no proficiency figure — a dash in those columns means the test was not given at that school, not that it performed badly. Proficiency is measured against Oregon’s own standard, so it compares cleanly within the state and only broadly against other states; AreaProfile therefore ranks it within state. The directory is current, while the proficiency figures are from the last school year with national coverage before the pandemic interrupted testing.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,326 takes 25% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 5.5 times median household income here, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
24.9%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.5×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,326
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$353,800
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income5.53Top 12%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate54.4%Bottom 12%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±81219,093Top 4%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$53$1,326Top 29%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$16,638$353,800Top 26%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income24.9%Top 15%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate5.3%Bottom 24%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
66/ 100
Top 21% of 5,428 published city profiles

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.

At 6.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US ZIP areas.

Units permitted
595
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
6.9
Top 20% nationally
Year over year
+43%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
54.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings

The Building Permits Survey is not published for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Medford, OR, 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 92°F and January a low of 33°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 18.4 inches, including 3.4 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 MEDFORD ROGUE VLY AP, 6.7 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND3.5"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation18.4"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall3.4"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low33°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high92°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing36°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

25 / 100
Physical resilience

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

WildfireHigh
EarthquakeElevated
Heat waveModerate
Inland floodingModerate
Volcanic activityModerate
AvalancheModerate

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

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.

These are deaths, not offences. AreaProfile does not publish reported crime, and this is not a substitute for it — it says nothing about burglary, theft or assault.

Jackson County records 3.9 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 14.9 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, because nationally most firearm deaths are suicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 20.8 per 100,000 residents in Jackson County.

Homicide
3.9
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Firearm deaths, all intents
14.9
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Drug overdose
20.8
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Suicide
21.3
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides. The two columns overlap and should not be added.

Age-adjusted rates from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC for Jackson County as a whole — these rates are not published below county level. A county can hold both a dense city centre and a suburb whose experience of it is nothing alike, so this describes the county around 97501 rather than 97501 itself. That is why AreaProfile shows these figures and does not put them in the Area Score. Where fewer than ten deaths were recorded the count is suppressed at source, and a rate built on single figures moves sharply between releases. What this measure has that reported crime does not: a death certificate is filed whether or not the local police agency submitted a return that year, so the figures stay comparable between places and over time.

What this profile does not cover

Three things people look for are missing from every AreaProfile page, and each is missing for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Reported crime
The FBI’s Crime Data Explorer is the only source for reported offences with national coverage and a published method, and it requires an API key AreaProfile does not hold. Arrest counts, news volume and commercial “safety scores” are not substituted in the meantime. What is published above under Safety is a different measurement — deaths rather than offences, from death certificates rather than police returns — and it covers no property crime at all.
Taxes
No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, transparent methodology and update cadence. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Full cost of living
No public source publishes one with national coverage and a documented method. Housing affordability above is computed from published rent, price and income, and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes — commuting cost in particular tends to offset suburban housing savings.

Access

1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest 6 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Rogue Valley Intl/MedfordMFR6 mi8,800 ft
Mahlon Sweet FldEUG128 mi8,009 ft
Portland IntlPDX229 mi11,000 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
51
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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)
safetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
April, 2025 to March, 2026Quarterly, with a rolling twelve-month window alongside complete calendar years
schoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2019-20 school year; 2024-25 school yearDirectory annually; assessment results as EDFacts releases them

Profile recalculated August 30, 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.

97501 vs Medford

How this ZIP area compares with Medford as a whole. Both figures come from the same ACS release, so the comparison is like for like.

97501
Medford
Median household income
$63,977
vs
$73,230
Per capita income
$32,026
vs
$37,002
Population density
985/sq mi
vs
3,020/sq mi
Median home value
$353,800
vs
$417,100
Median gross rent
$1,326
vs
$1,376
Homeownership rate
54.4%
vs
56.3%
Bachelor's degree or higher
20.7%
vs
30.1%
Poverty rate
15.7%
vs
13.2%
Median age
37.7
vs
38.9

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.