Whatcom County, Washington

Whatcom County has a population of 230,503 and has grown 4.2% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $585,800, about 7.2 times the county's median household income of $81,784.

Home price
$585,800
Income
$81,784
Population
230,503
Unemployment
4.8%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$585,800county
Median gross rent$1,555county
Median year homes here were built1989county
Share of homes built before 198039.6%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile6.5%county
Share of homes that are vacant9.2%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented36.3%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use4.7%county
Typical monthly rent$1,998county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$1,794county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$1,493county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$2,495county
Home insurance / yr$1,753(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living114.1(statewide)
Median household income$81,784county
Family health premium / yr$25,355(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$20,677(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$5.128(statewide)
Poverty rate12.9%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home14.8%county
Unemployment rate4.8%county
Share of adults in the labor force63.1%county
Share of workers who are self-employed7.5%county
Share of workers employed by government15.7%county
Share of workers in the largest industry23.9%county
Economic output per resident$89,542county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.70%county
Top state income tax0.00%(statewide)
Capital gains tax9.90%(statewide)
Combined sales tax9.57%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time21.6 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service3.1 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport266703county
Miles to nearest general aviation field9.3 micounty
Airports with airline service located here1county
General aviation airfields located here2county
Passenger train stations and the railway network1county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station7.2 micounty
Households without a vehicle6.4%county
Traffic deaths11.7county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-2.6(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher39.3%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher93.8%county
Public schools in the county74county
Public school enrollment27340county
Students per full-time teacher18.5county
Free lunch eligible46.0%county
Elementary schools36county
Middle schools11county
High schools17county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above4county
Share of local colleges that are public100.0%county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution2.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians94county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county1county
Hospitals here with an emergency department1county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here4county
Fine particulate matter5.6 µgcounty
Without health insurance5.8%county
Frequent mental distress17.2%county
No leisure-time physical activity16.3%county
Diagnosed diabetes9.8%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population230,503county
Land area in square miles2,108county
People per square mile of land109.0county
Supermarkets and grocery stores45county
Convenience stores28county
Share living far from a food store20.1%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract7.9%county
Population change since 2020+4.2%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents-0county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents2county
Median age38.4 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1818.5%county
Share of residents 65 and over18.9%county
Share of households that are one person28.8%county
Share of residents born outside the United States9.9%county
Second languages12.5%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls43.7%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents96county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents6county
Households that moved in6,485county
Households that moved away5,903county
Average income of arriving households$76,324county
Average income of departing households$73,674county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes12county
Housing units authorised in the latest year1,214county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings50.0%county
Violent crime rate326(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature46.3°Fcounty
Annual precipitation73.7 incounty
Annual snowfall9.4 incounty
Average daily solar energy3.42 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F0 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing99 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 7bcounty
Frost-free days181 dayscounty
Average last spring frostApr 26county
Average first fall frostOct 24county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$128county
Electric utilities serving this county1county
Electricity price per kWh14.6¢county
Household electricity use875 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$17.98(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity46.5%county
Homes heated by utility gas39.5%county
Homes heated by propane8.7%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.9%county
Homes heated by wood3.4%county
Households with broadband93.7%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk88.9county
Coastal flood risk63.2county
Drought risk14.5county
Landslide risk97.7county
Hail risk2.0county
Earthquake risk97.8county
Tornado risk13.1county
Tropical cyclone risk0.0county
Extreme heat risk78.9county
Winter weather risk82.5county
Strong wind risk2.2county
Wildfire risk61.7county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Whatcom County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the Washington figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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