City profile · Alaska · Census ACS 2023

Prudhoe Bay, AK

Population, income, housing, safety, climate and schools for Prudhoe Bay - drawn straight from Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA, NCES, HUD and FEMA, refreshed on the 2024–2025 release cycle.

1,971
Residents
$1,625
Median rent (state)

Prudhoe Bay - the verdict

1,971 people call Prudhoe Bay, Alaska home. Source: Census ACS.

64th
percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this

Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.

Data Snapshot: Prudhoe Bay, AK

Alaska's Prudhoe Bay is a small town, with 1,971 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. The median resident age is 40.3 years. Educational attainment runs 19.5% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 97.4% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

Alaska tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Alaska at 102.4 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Near Average). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,625 per month. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Alaska's average monthly utility costs around $271 (state average). Commute times here average 22.0 minutes, with 7.1% driving alone and 3.9% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. Natural-hazard exposure scores 14.8 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Very Low).

Population

1,971 residents

Census ACS 2023 - Alaska

Median Household Income

N/A /yr

Census ACS B19013

Cost of Living Index (state)

102.4 (US=100)

Near Average - BEA RPP 2024, Alaska average

How does Prudhoe Bay compare to other US cities?

Here's how Prudhoe Bay stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.

Median rent 64% pricier than other cities

"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

How we calculate these percentiles & ranks

For each metric we count every US city with population 1,000+ and a non-null value, then compute what share of them fall below Prudhoe Bay's value: round(cities-below ÷ total × 100). Safety is inverted (percentile = share of cities with a higher crime rate) so a higher number always means safer. The in-state rank narrows that same crime-rate comparison to only the cities PlainCities tracks in Alaska, breaking ties alphabetically. See the methodology page for the full source-to-figure lineage.

Income distribution context

Median household income is not available for Prudhoe Bay in the current Census ACS release (common for very small places).

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 19.5%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 97.4%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
1,971
Median Income
N/A
Median Home Value
N/A
Median Age
40.3
Poverty Rate
N/A
Labor force participation
97.4%
Bachelor's Degree+
19.5%

Commute Patterns

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Average Commute Time
22.0 minutes
Drive Alone
7.1%
Carpool
15.8%
Public Transit
1.7%
Walk
53.0%
Work from Home
3.9%
Other
18.5%

Based on 1,926 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

State-average estimates for Alaska - EIA 2023 residential energy data

Electricity
$131
avg/month
Natural Gas
$95
avg/month
Water & Sewer
$45
avg/month
Total Utilities
$271
estimated/month

Estimates reflect Alaska state averages. Actual costs vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

Cost of living is a Alaska state average from BEA; rent and hazard risk are county-level figures from HUD and FEMA for the county Prudhoe Bay sits in

Cost of Living Index
102.4
Near Average
US average = 100 · BEA RPP 2024
Typical 2-BR Rent
$1,625/mo
HUD Fair Market Rent
County-level FMR estimate
Natural Hazard Risk
14.8 / 100
Very Low
FEMA NRI composite score (county)

Similar Cities in Alaska

Kodiak Station
1,941 people
Deltana
2,064 people
Dillingham
2,084 people
Wrangell city and
2,106 people
Haines
1,781 people
Willow
1,769 people

Cities of a Similar Size Nationwide

Population-matched peers from other states, closest to Prudhoe Bay's 1,971 residents (Census ACS 5-Year 2023).

Century, FL
1,972 people
Albany, KY
1,972 people
Stone Ridge, NY
1,970 people
Oakhurst, OK
1,970 people
Amity, OR
1,972 people
Rio Hondo, TX
1,970 people

Race & Ethnicity Composition

Race and ethnicity - Prudhoe Bay, AK Race categories sum to one hundred percent per Census methodology. Hispanic or Latino is shown separately as an ethnicity overlay; it cuts across all race categories per OMB Directive 15. Race & Ethnicity Composition Prudhoe Bay, AK - Census ACS, OMB race + ethnicity categories RACE, sums to 100% 72.3% 7.0% ETHNICITY, Hispanic or Latino (any race) 5.4% White 72.3% Black or African American 4.7% Asian 7.0% American Indian 5.7% Native Hawaiian 3.3% Some other race 1.3% Two or more races 5.6% Per OMB Directive 15: Hispanic/Latino ethnicity is reported separately from the race categories.
Race categories sum to 100%. Hispanic or Latino ethnicity is reported separately and cuts across race per Census/OMB methodology.

City-level race and ethnicity, Census ACS 5-year 2023 (tables B02001, B03001), OMB Directive 15 categories.

How Prudhoe Bay compares to nearby Alaska cities

Population + median household income, sourced from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 (population) and B19013 (median household income).

City Population Median Household Income
Prudhoe Bay (this city) 1,971 N/A
Kodiak Station 1,941 $102,069
Deltana 2,064 $95,927
Dillingham 2,084 $99,097
Census ACS 5-year FIPS AK OMB Bulletin 23-01

What do people ask about Prudhoe Bay, AK?

What is the population of Prudhoe Bay, AK? +

Prudhoe Bay, AK counts 1,971 residents according to U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates.

What is the cost of living in Prudhoe Bay? +

BEA does not publish a city-level cost-of-living figure for Prudhoe Bay; the closest available measure is the Alaska state average, a cost of living index of 102.4 (U.S. average = 100), rated "Near Average" based on BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 data. Costs within Alaska vary by metro area.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities Editorial

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Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.