Safford, Graham County, Arizona Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Safford, Arizona, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Safford, Arizona. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Safford, Arizona. The estimated population of Safford, Arizona is 9,981 people, with a median age of 31.8.

We can look at the total population in Safford over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
9,981
+2.82%
+3.30%
2020
9,707
-0.43% -
2019
9,749
+0.14%
-
2018
9,735
+0.76%
-
2017
9,662
- -

Population of Safford, Arizona by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
44.8%
50.3%
-10.93%
Black/African American
3.1%
2.2%
+40.91%
Native
0.3%
1.7%
-82.35%
Hispanic
50.4%
44.4%
+13.51%
Asian
0%
0.9%
-100.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
0.00%
Two Or More Races
1%
0.4%
+150.00%
Other
0.4%
0%
0.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Safford, Arizona by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 31.8 +0.32% 29 +1.4% 35.3 +2.62%
2020 31.7 -1.25% 28.6 -2.72% 34.4 -1.71%
2019 32.1 -5.03% 29.4 -2.97% 35 -2.23%
2018 33.8 +5.96% 30.3 +1.68% 35.8 +1.13%
2017 31.9 - 29.8 - 35.4 -

The median age of Safford, Arizona gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 765 +5.42% 753 -14.65% 797 638
10 to 19 945 -9.72% 668 -10.32% 845 593
20 to 29 592 +59.31% 872 -9.93% 1,022 783
30 to 39 455 +30.53% 498 +53.51% 609 767
40 to 49 508 +29.43% 601 -3.45% 636 568
50 to 59 397 -25.36% 491 -0.45% 303 479
60 to 69 418 -11.62% 562 -49.96% 360 327
70+ 446 +15.54% 691 +7.98% 509 745

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Safford, Arizona is $53,503.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Safford.

  • Under 25
    $50,035.00
  • 25 to 44
    $63,477.00
  • 45 to 64
    $66,875.00
  • 65 and over
    $37,083.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Safford, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Safford, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Safford, Arizona is currently $62,281.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

2.10% of households in Safford are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Safford against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    24.39%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    20.83%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    24.10%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    17.27%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    7.53%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3.79%
  • $200,000 or more
    2.10%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Safford is $22,635.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Safford by the total population of Safford.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Safford, Arizona, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Safford to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    6.25%
  • Bachelor's degree
    28.04%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    26.18%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    37.20%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.34%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Safford that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Safford over the age of 16 is 7,556.

Of those people, a total of 61.50% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Safford is 59.00%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 448 48.00% 19.50%
20 to 24 years 1,082 84.90% 2.60%
25 to 29 years 723 83.80% 3.80%
30 to 34 years 761 72.70% 8.90%
35 to 44 years 1,116 76.50% 3.30%
45 to 54 years 1,156 82.30% 0.00%
55 to 59 years 329 49.80% 7.30%
60 to 64 years 445 57.80% 4.30%
65 to 74 years 680 11.90% 0.00%
75 years and over 816 5.80% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Safford. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 6,009 61.10% 4.10%
Black or African American 286 55.20% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 68 92.60% 14.30%
Asian 53 94.30% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 345 49.30% 10.00%
Two or more races 795 67.30% 2.10%
Hispanic or Latino 3,577 69.60% 3.20%
Not Hispanic or Latino 3,545 54.70% 5.20%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Safford as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Safford is 4,458, with median earnings of $30,613.00.

Women in Safford, Arizona earning approximately 69.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 4,458 $30,613.00
Male 2,378 $38,523.00
Female 2,080 $26,899.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 379 $41,182.00
Business and Financial 183 $44,415.00
Computer and Mathematical 31 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 82 $61,250.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 113 $63,872.00
Community and Social Service 165 $21,292.00
Legal 0 $0.00
Educational and Library 162 $44,531.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 37 $27,102.00
Healthcare Practitioners 104 $65,185.00
Healthcare Support 69 $24,028.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 33 $0.00
Law Enforcement 43 $44,219.00
Food Preparation and Serving 348 $18,547.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 167 $2,499.00
Personal Care and Service 149 $17,723.00
Sales 290 $22,206.00
Office and Administrative Support 661 $31,043.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 44 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 512 $38,892.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 220 $50,250.00
Production 235 $27,440.00
Transportation and Material Moving 103 $9,550.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 160 $70,638.00 219 $36,161.00
Business and Financial 55 $0.00 128 $53,429.00
Computer and Mathematical 6 $0.00 25 $0.00
Architecture and Engineering 82 $61,250.00 0 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 34 $73,684.00 79 $63,323.00
Community and Social Service 67 $0.00 98 $50,050.00
Legal 0 $0.00 0 $0.00
Educational and Library 45 $34,375.00 117 $45,048.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 15 $0.00 22 $0.00
Healthcare Practitioners 64 $67,037.00 40 $34,000.00
Healthcare Support 0 $0.00 69 $24,028.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 33 $0.00 0 $0.00
Law Enforcement 43 $44,219.00 0 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 194 $19,914.00 154 $17,851.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 43 $0.00 124 $2,499.00
Personal Care and Service 40 $2,499.00 109 $19,509.00
Sales 190 $9,526.00 100 $33,833.00
Office and Administrative Support 242 $37,692.00 419 $30,630.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 9 $0.00 35 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 458 $38,797.00 54 $65,417.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 142 $63,600.00 78 $26,528.00
Production 155 $66,474.00 80 $7,439.00
Transportation and Material Moving 70 $8,600.00 33 $33,750.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 3,481 households in Safford, with an average household size of 2.83 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 2,370 families in Safford with an average family size of 3.37 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 1,412 323 635 1,111
Average Household Size 3.45 3.85 3.62 1.29
Total Families 1,412 323 635 0
Average Household Size 3.43 3.07 3.4 0

Poverty

Of the 2,370 families in Safford, 16.70% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Safford:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 4,035 housing units in Safford, Arizona.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 3,481 86.27%
Vacant 554 13.73%

25.48% of the total 4,035 housing units in Safford are rental units. This is approximately 1,028 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 2,400 are occupied by the owner - or 59.48% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Safford is $788.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Safford that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    53
  • Less than $500
    117
  • $500 to $999
    610
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    197
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    104
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Safford is $151,300.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Safford that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    240
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    352
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    581
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    728
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    300
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    178
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    14
  • $1,000,000 or more
    7

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Safford. The chart below shows the number of properties in Safford that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    478
  • 1940 to 1949
    141
  • 1950 to 1959
    582
  • 1960 to 1969
    414
  • 1970 to 1979
    569
  • 1980 to 1989
    357
  • 1990 to 1999
    586
  • 2000 to 2009
    529
  • 2010 to 2013
    354
  • 2014 or later
    25

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Safford that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    205
  • 1 vehicle available
    862
  • 2 vehicles available
    1,349
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    1,065

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Safford get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Safford that commute to work in a particular way.

20.6 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Safford.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    257
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    1,604
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    499
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    541
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    380
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    127
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    33
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    0
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    102
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    278
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    459
  • 90 or more minutes
    52

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Safford, Arizona in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.