Ontario, Oregon

Area Profile

11,842 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Ontario, in Malheur County.

50out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 20% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 13 sources
Opportunity2,735th of 4,199 cities measured49
Schools3,583rd of 4,162 cities measured21
GrowthTop 36% of 4,224 cities measured57
Housing affordabilityTop 35% of 4,218 cities measured71
Climate3,827th of 4,225 cities measured58
Physical resilience2,718th of 4,226 cities measured45
Access3,869th of 4,226 cities measured65
Economic stability3,759th of 4,226 cities measured32
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.7% and median household income $46,308, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured. The unemployment rate is published for Malheur County, OR, which contains Ontario, rather than for Ontario alone.

In the public schools here, 30% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 16.5 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 30 units authorized over the past twelve months, 35% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

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
11,842
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$46,308
Bottom 17% nationally
Density
1,979/sq mi
6 sq mi of land
Median age
35.2
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Oregon
Micro area
Nearest major airport
BOI
49 mi · Boise Air Trml/Gowen Fld
Median home value
$236,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Malheur County, OR, which contains Ontario, is 4.7% — higher than in all but 36% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Malheur County, OR, which contains Ontario, grew 0.7% over the past year, to 12,812 employed residents.

Median household income of $46,308 is lower than in 83% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsMalheur County, OR’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$41,0231st percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftMalheur County, OR’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$49,3866th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$8,9442024 ACS 5-Year$46,308Bottom 17%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$2,4542024 ACS 5-Year$26,056Bottom 23%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year20.2%Bottom 22%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.3 min2024 ACS 5-Year15.9 minTop 7%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year15.7%Bottom 37%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±7%2024 ACS 5-Year76.3%47th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentMalheur County, OR’s figureJuly 202612,812Bottom 8%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Malheur County, OR’s figureJuly 2026+4.0%Top 9%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Malheur County, OR’s figureJuly 2026+0.7%Top 22%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceMalheur County, OR’s figureJuly 202613,4488th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year71.6%Bottom 30%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Malheur County, OR’s figureJuly 2026−1.2%Top 7%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateMalheur County, OR’s figureJuly 20264.7%Bottom 36%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year7.7%50th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202446k40k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $46,308 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.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Malheur County, OR, which contains this city.

30% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 50% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 16.5 students for every full-time teacher across 7 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
7
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
16.5
across all schools here
Math proficiency
30.5%
Bottom 15% in Oregon
Reading proficiency
50.0%
Bottom 18% in Oregon
All 7 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Ontario High SchoolOntario SD 8C70918.217%62%
Ontario Middle SchoolOntario SD 8C47115.243%57%
Four Rivers Community School · charterOregon Department of Education36718.437%47%
Alameda Intermediate SchoolOntario SD 8C35516.138%47%
Aiken Elementary SchoolOntario SD 8C33315.927%37%
May Roberts Primary SchoolOntario SD 8C30214.427%38%
Annex Charter School · charterAnnex SD 2913116.437%37%

87.1% 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.

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 $1,814 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.77% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,081, some 34% above the $804 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,081 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $43,200 a year, about 93% of the median household income here of $46,308.

The typical renter household here spends 27% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $804 a month.

A median home at $236,300 costs 3.8 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $62,422, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Rent as a share of income
26.6%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.8×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,081
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$804
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$236,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Ontario’s median household income of $46,308, 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
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Oregon’s figure2026 Q2+3.0%48th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Oregon’s figure2026 Q2+35.6%30th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Oregon’s figure2026 Q2+105.2%69th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.92024 ACS 5-Year3.8Bottom 20%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year55.6%15th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±2252024 ACS 5-Year4,93888th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$942Top 18%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,503Top 18%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,081Top 13%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$512024 ACS 5-Year$804Top 29%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$22,0112024 ACS 5-Year$236,30062nd percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1212024 ACS 5-Year$1,81451st percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$13,2812024 ACS 5-Year$62,422Bottom 27%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.09%2024 ACS 5-Year0.77%35th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year26.6%Top 40%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±212024 ACS 5-Year01st percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year7.4%52nd percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1492024 ACS 5-Year36386th percentileof 32,3302024 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.

Development Momentum

57/ 100
Top 36% of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been rising for the last 2 years of a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

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 2% since 2020, reaching 11,957 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 30 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Malheur County, which contains Ontario, lost about 0.2% 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 $41,023, below the $49,386 of households that moved out.

At 2.5 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
30
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.5
Bottom 49% nationally
Year over year
−35%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202412k12k
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 holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
−0.2%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
83%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$41,023
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$49,386
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Payette County, ID 322 people · 24% of arrivals
  2. Canyon County, ID 209 people · 16% of arrivals
  3. Ada County, ID 134 people · 10% of arrivals
  4. Washington County, ID 53 people · 4.0% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Payette County, ID 293 people · 21% of departures
  2. Canyon County, ID 272 people · 20% of departures
  3. Ada County, ID 158 people · 12% 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 Malheur County, OR. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

202020212022202320242025593.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was higher than 2020 (+1867%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 95°F and January a low of 24°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 9.5 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°110°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station ONTARIO MUNI AP, 1.8 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND1.4"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals9.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals24°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals95°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals47°F1991-2020 Normals

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

Physical risk

45 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and earthquake, with inland flooding alone responsible for 63% of it.

WildfireElevated
Winter weatherModerate
LandslideModerate
EarthquakeElevated
AvalancheModerate
Heat waveHigh
HailModerate
Volcanic activityModerate
Inland floodingModerate

Low or minimal exposure: lightning, drought, ice storm, strong wind, cold wave, tornado, coastal flooding, tsunami, hurricane.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
441
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
3,965
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Ontario's police department reported 441 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 3,965.

Malheur County has a modeled homicide rate of about 2.9 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at about 18.1 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at about 15.1 per 100,000 residents in Malheur County.

Homicide
2.9
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Firearm deaths, all intents
18.1
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Drug overdose
15.1
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Suicide
22.5
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Ontario’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Ontario (Malheur County) rather than Ontario itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

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.

Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
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

1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest Boise Air Trml/Gowen Fld at 49 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year88.8%Bottom 46%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle49 miBottom 13%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle1Bottom 1%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year8.1%Bottom 47%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Boise Air Trml/Gowen FldBOI49 mi10,000 ft
Joslin Fld/Magic Valley RgnlTWF165 mi8,704 ft
Pocatello RgnlPIH233 mi9,059 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.

Customize your score

What matters to you?

Choose what you weight most heavily. Nothing is saved to an account — your preferences stay in this browser, and the Area Score never changes.

Area Score
50
Your Score
—

Select one or more priorities to see how this location scores against them.

Compare

Put Ontario side by side with a similar place.

Ontario vs ZanesvilleOntario vs Binghamton

Moving to Ontario from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
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
SafetyU.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
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.

ZIP codes in Ontario

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Ontario with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Ontario closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
9791419,713$50,857$249,200—