Laramie, Wyoming

Area Profile

32,234 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Laramie, in Albany County.

72out of 100
Area Score
Top 10% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 14 sources
OpportunityTop 3% of 4,199 cities measured85
Growth2,234th of 4,224 cities measured49
Housing affordabilityTop 43% of 4,218 cities measured69
Climate4,197th of 4,225 cities measured49
Physical resilienceTop 15% of 4,226 cities measured86
AccessTop 9% of 4,226 cities measured99
Economic stabilityTop 34% of 4,226 cities measured66
The quick read

Laramie ranks in the top 3% of cities measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 2.1% and median household income of $55,613.

Residential permitting has slowed: 36 units authorized over the past twelve months, 29% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

Rent takes 31% of renter income here, above the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 3.2 times what its owners earn.

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
32,234
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$55,613
Bottom 32% nationally
Density
1,743/sq mi
18.5 sq mi of land
Median age
26.9
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Wyoming
Micro area
Nearest major airport
LAR
3 mi · Laramie Rgnl
Median home value
$319,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 2.1%, lower than in 99% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment grew 6.9% over the past year, to 18,871 employed residents.

56% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 92% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsAlbany County, WY’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$51,60410th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftAlbany County, WY’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$50,8328th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$3,0052024 ACS 5-Year$55,613Bottom 32%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,7312024 ACS 5-Year$35,096Top 46%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year9.9%Top 46%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.2 min2024 ACS 5-Year14.5 minTop 5%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year56.2%Top 8%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year64.3%17th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202618,871Bottom 21%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+6.3%Top 3%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+6.9%Top 1%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202619,27920th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year86.8%Top 18%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±1.0%2024 ACS 5-Year2.4%91st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−0.5%Top 25%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20262.1%Top 1%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year10.8%63rd percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/073.72.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 2.1% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202456k45k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $55,613 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.

63% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 64% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.9 students for every full-time teacher across 10 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
13
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.9
across 10 of them
Math proficiency
62.7%
2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency
64.5%
2018-19 school year
The 12 largest of 13 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Laramie High SchoolAlbany County School District #11,07016.561%64%
Laramie Middle SchoolAlbany County School District #173514.460%59%
Slade ElementaryAlbany County School District #144011.672%72%
Spring Creek ElementaryAlbany County School District #130710.672%67%
Indian Paintbrush ElementaryAlbany County School District #126911.247%57%
Snowy Range Academy · charterAlbany County School District #126011.387%82%
Velma Linford ElementaryAlbany County School District #125011.962%57%
UW Laboratory SchoolAlbany County School District #11629.062%72%
Laramie Montessori Charter School · charterAlbany County School District #19712.135%65%
Whiting High SchoolAlbany County School District #1433.910%30%
Harmony ElementaryAlbany County School District #1153.8——
Centennial ElementaryAlbany County School District #144.0——

33.4% 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 Wyoming’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 Wyoming is up 44% over five years, and up 3.9% 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 $1,864 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.58% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $963, close to the $925 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $963 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $38,500 a year, about 69% of the median household income here of $55,613.

The typical renter household here spends 31% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $925 a month.

A median home at $319,500 costs 3.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $100,824, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Rent as a share of income
30.8%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$963
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$925
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$319,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Laramie’s median household income of $55,613, 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 Wyoming’s figure2026 Q2+3.9%65th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Wyoming’s figure2026 Q2+43.6%52nd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Wyoming’s figure2026 Q2+76.5%24th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year3.2Bottom 31%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year44.1%6th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±2952024 ACS 5-Year15,49096th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$786Top 7%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,339Top 9%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$963Top 5%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$342024 ACS 5-Year$925Top 45%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$15,8542024 ACS 5-Year$319,50074th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$652024 ACS 5-Year$1,86453rd percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$6,7172024 ACS 5-Year$100,824Top 27%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.04%2024 ACS 5-Year0.58%18th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year30.8%Bottom 37%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1402024 ACS 5-Year22694th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.5%65th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year4.8%37th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±2682024 ACS 5-Year96395th 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

49/ 100
Ranks 2,234 of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in 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 5% since 2020, reaching 32,957 in 2024.

Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 49 units authorized in 2025, up 23% on the prior year.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 36 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Albany County, which contains Laramie, lost about 0.5% 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 $51,604, close to the $50,832 of households that moved out.

At 1.1 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
36
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.1
Bottom 28% nationally
Year over year
−29%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202433k31k
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 rising for the last 4 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
−0.5%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
67%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$51,604
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$50,832
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Laramie County, WY 233 people · 9.7% of arrivals
  2. Larimer County, CO 113 people · 4.7% of arrivals
  3. Weld County, CO 78 people · 3.2% of arrivals
  4. Natrona County, WY 72 people · 3.0% of arrivals
  5. Fremont County, WY 61 people · 2.5% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Laramie County, WY 267 people · 11% of departures
  2. Larimer County, CO 130 people · 5.1% of departures
  3. Natrona County, WY 61 people · 2.4% of departures
  4. Weld County, CO 51 people · 2.0% of departures
  5. Maricopa County, AZ 50 people · 2.0% 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 Albany County, WY. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

20202021202220232024202511440
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−57%).

Weather & climate

3 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 81°F and January a low of 10°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 10.5 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 50, in the Good band, and about 13 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

0°20°40°60°80°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station LARAMIE RGNL AP, 3.5 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND1.8"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year802024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals10.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals10°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals81°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals31991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year132024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year502024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals43°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
50
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
80
90th percentile index
Days above 100
13
unhealthy for sensitive groups

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

86 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and lightning, with inland flooding alone responsible for 36% of it. Inland flooding and lightning 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 85% of measured US cities.

Cold waveModerate
WildfireElevated
EarthquakeModerate
HailModerate

Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, landslide, avalanche, lightning, ice storm, inland flooding, tornado, strong wind, drought, heat wave, coastal flooding, tsunami, hurricane, volcanic activity.

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
93
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
987
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.

Laramie's police department reported 93 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 987.

Albany County has a modeled homicide rate of about 3.2 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 15.1 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 9.6 per 100,000 residents in Albany County.

Homicide
3.2
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Firearm deaths, all intents
15.1
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Drug overdose
9.6
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Suicide
24.1
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 Laramie’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 Laramie (Albany County) rather than Laramie 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.
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

6 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Laramie Rgnl at 3 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year88.6%Bottom 45%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle3 miTop 4%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle6Top 27%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year4.5%Top 33%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Laramie RgnlLAR3 mi8,503 ft
Cheyenne Rgnl/Jerry Olson FldCYS43 mi9,270 ft
Shively FldSAA64 mi8,801 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
72
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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
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
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
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
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
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 Laramie

2 ZIP areas

Every ZIP area in Laramie 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 Laramie 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
8207020,144$69,095$338,50072
8207216,931$53,863$324,100—