Iron County, Utah Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Iron County, Utah, 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 Iron County, Utah. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Iron County, Utah. The estimated population of Iron County, Utah is 55,839 people, with a median age of 29.5.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
55,839
+5.06%
+15.12%
2020
53,148
+3.78%
-
2019
51,213
+3.06%
-
2018
49,691
+2.45%
-
2017
48,504
 - -

Population of Iron County, Utah 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
84.9%
86.3%
 -1.62%
Black/African American
0.7%
0.5%
 +40.00%
Native
1.7%
2.5%
 -32.00%
Hispanic
9.3%
8.5%
 +9.41%
Asian
0.9%
0.6%
 +50.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.2%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
2%
1.6%
 +25.00%
Other
0.2%
0.1%
 +100.00%

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 Iron County, Utah 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 29.5 +0.68% 29.3 +1.03% 29.7 +1.02%
2020 29.3 +0.69% 29 +0.35% 29.4 +0.34%
2019 29.1 0% 28.9 +1.05% 29.3 -0.68%
2018 29.1 0% 28.6 -0.35% 29.5 +0.68%
2017 29.1 - 28.7 - 29.3 -

The median age of Iron County, Utah 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 4,005 +8.72% 4,050 +1.37% 4,363 4,094
10 to 19 3,847 +21.35% 4,188 +22.67% 4,713 5,208
20 to 29 4,582 +12.46% 4,307 +11.54% 5,179 4,823
30 to 39 3,028 +14.1% 2,987 +12.06% 3,465 3,358
40 to 49 2,471 +18.27% 2,298 +18.42% 2,944 2,736
50 to 59 2,419 +5.83% 2,469 -3.49% 2,559 2,381
60 to 69 1,910 +26.7% 2,088 +32.48% 2,469 2,838
70+ 1,846 +22.41% 2,009 +19.21% 2,288 2,421

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Iron County, Utah is $56,308.00.

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 Iron County.

  • Under 25
    $30,239.00
  • 25 to 44
    $63,525.00
  • 45 to 64
    $63,833.00
  • 65 and over
    $54,375.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Iron County, 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 Iron County, Utah is currently $74,892.00.

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.

3.21% of households in Iron County 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 Iron County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    17.04%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    26.98%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    19.88%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    14.60%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    13.24%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    5.04%
  • $200,000 or more
    3.21%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Iron County is $24,671.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Iron County 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
    10.65%
  • Bachelor's degree
    35.00%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    15.50%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    36.32%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.53%

Employment

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

The total population of Iron County over the age of 16 is 41,856.

Of those people, a total of 63.00% 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 Iron County is 60.30%.

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 4,395 47.60% 10.80%
20 to 24 years 6,114 78.00% 3.70%
25 to 29 years 3,888 75.80% 5.50%
30 to 34 years 3,267 79.50% 1.80%
35 to 44 years 6,345 81.20% 4.20%
45 to 54 years 5,287 80.40% 4.40%
55 to 59 years 2,544 72.30% 2.10%
60 to 64 years 2,813 60.90% 2.70%
65 to 74 years 4,571 19.90% 0.00%
75 years and over 2,632 4.30% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Iron County. 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 37,708 63.10% 4.00%
Black or African American 312 58.30% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 782 61.10% 16.90%
Asian 476 37.00% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 117 96.60% 0.00%
Other 965 60.40% 8.10%
Two or more races 1,496 70.00% 1.90%
Hispanic or Latino 3,399 66.60% 4.00%
Not Hispanic or Latino 36,102 63.00% 4.10%

Occupations

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

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Iron County is 25,252, with median earnings of $28,761.00.

Women in Iron County, Utah earning approximately 50.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 25,252 $28,761.00
Male 13,518 $36,864.00
Female 11,734 $18,711.00

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 2,281 $39,364.00
Business and Financial 545 $43,365.00
Computer and Mathematical 436 $26,321.00
Architecture and Engineering 457 $67,768.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 165 $54,115.00
Community and Social Service 410 $46,154.00
Legal 188 $34,237.00
Educational and Library 1,959 $34,357.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 495 $13,958.00
Healthcare Practitioners 948 $65,313.00
Healthcare Support 1,222 $16,837.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 265 $20,483.00
Law Enforcement 269 $43,170.00
Food Preparation and Serving 1,488 $14,055.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 1,085 $13,705.00
Personal Care and Service 844 $16,595.00
Sales 2,577 $17,605.00
Office and Administrative Support 3,422 $24,565.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 320 $21,947.00
Construction and Extraction 2,199 $33,975.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 549 $52,875.00
Production 1,447 $32,346.00
Transportation and Material Moving 844 $40,161.00

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 1,567 $54,393.00 714 $27,414.00
Business and Financial 310 $34,966.00 235 $52,083.00
Computer and Mathematical 366 $26,557.00 70 $13,750.00
Architecture and Engineering 408 $69,226.00 49 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 165 $54,115.00 0 $0.00
Community and Social Service 189 $65,521.00 221 $37,872.00
Legal 119 $34,555.00 69 $24,464.00
Educational and Library 637 $59,399.00 1,322 $22,308.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 270 $17,200.00 225 $10,466.00
Healthcare Practitioners 411 $88,875.00 537 $53,675.00
Healthcare Support 249 $24,226.00 973 $16,301.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 147 $47,882.00 118 $11,000.00
Law Enforcement 138 $67,500.00 131 $40,335.00
Food Preparation and Serving 513 $13,250.00 975 $14,358.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 521 $33,750.00 564 $10,484.00
Personal Care and Service 192 $32,292.00 652 $15,230.00
Sales 878 $39,167.00 1,699 $14,918.00
Office and Administrative Support 1,169 $27,139.00 2,253 $22,480.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 194 $21,814.00 126 $27,143.00
Construction and Extraction 2,199 $33,975.00 0 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 540 $52,650.00 9 $0.00
Production 1,015 $40,406.00 432 $13,013.00
Transportation and Material Moving 781 $42,618.00 63 $34,327.00

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 17,736 households in Iron County, with an average household size of 3.11 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 12,827 families in Iron County with an average family size of 3.57 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 10,572 732 1,523 4,909
Average Household Size 3.55 4.17 4.26 1.66
Total Families 10,572 732 1,523 0
Average Household Size 3.51 3.55 3.94 0

Poverty

Of the 12,827 families in Iron County, 9.30% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Iron County:

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 21,398 housing units in Iron County, Utah.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 17,736 82.89%
Vacant 3,662 17.11%

26.51% of the total 21,398 housing units in Iron County are rental units. This is approximately 5,672 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 11,784 are occupied by the owner - or 55.07% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Iron County is $863.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Iron County 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
    280
  • Less than $500
    540
  • $500 to $999
    3,205
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    1,458
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    417
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    14
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    21
  • $3,000 or more
    17

Property Value

The median value of a property in Iron County is $248,100.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    565
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    250
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    685
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    2,051
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    4,340
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    3,030
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    788
  • $1,000,000 or more
    75

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    599
  • 1940 to 1949
    515
  • 1950 to 1959
    835
  • 1960 to 1969
    983
  • 1970 to 1979
    2,791
  • 1980 to 1989
    3,518
  • 1990 to 1999
    5,037
  • 2000 to 2009
    4,623
  • 2010 to 2013
    2,465
  • 2014 or later
    32

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 Iron County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    456
  • 1 vehicle available
    4,074
  • 2 vehicles available
    7,264
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    5,942

Commuting to Work

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

16.5 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Iron County.

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
    1,609
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    5,769
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    6,128
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    4,259
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    1,372
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    221
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    745
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    158
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    174
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    821
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    881
  • 90 or more minutes
    342

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Iron County, Utah 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.

Places in Iron County, Utah

We have data for 11 places in Iron County, Utah. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.