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Place dossier plate
SheetOR-JOHN-DAY-OR · John Day, OR 1,543 pop · income 57th pct · 3 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around John Day
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest John Day on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Princeton · lowest
36,656
Princeton · lowest
36,656 median HH income
14.7% of the leader · rank #1
Joseph · near
75,907
Joseph · near
75,907 median HH income
30.4% of the leader · rank #2
Pottsboro · near
75,909
Pottsboro · near
75,909 median HH income
30.4% of the leader · rank #3
Omak · near
75,911
Omak · near
75,911 median HH income
30.4% of the leader · rank #4
John Day · this city
75,917
John Day · this city
75,917 median HH income
30.4% of the leader · rank #5
Millersport · near
75,921
Millersport · near
75,921 median HH income
30.4% of the leader · rank #6
Westlake · highest
250,001
Westlake · highest
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for John Day on ACS population and median household income
. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 1,543.
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, John Day places in the 57th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
57th
percentile, household income
43rd
percentile, home value
66th
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: John Day, OR
Census ACS 2023 estimates count 1,543 residents in John Day, a small town within Oregon. Households in John Day report a median income of $75,917 per year, above the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 2.8%. John Day's housing stock carries a median value of $199,400, and the median resident age is 42.9 years. Educational attainment runs 22.5% of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher. Separately, 56.5% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
NOAA climate normals record an annual average temperature of 52.7°F with 9.8 inches of precipitation per year.
Oregon carries a cost-of-living premium: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts Oregon at 103.4 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Above Average). A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,425 per month statewide. Monthly utility costs average around $185 across Oregon, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. Natural-hazard exposure scores 63.4 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Moderate).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of John Day's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from housing and income to climate and hazard context to within-city variation to schools and households to comparison shortlist to work and mobility to population change; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For John Day, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, matched public-school count, commute-mode shares, within-city Census tract profiles.
No matched row is reported here for local building permits, FBI reported-crime rates; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
How far does income reach against housing in John Day?
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 2.6 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 2.8%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 52.7°F, with 9.8 inches of precipitation. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for Oregon is 63.4 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
Which cities make useful reference points for John Day?
Within Oregon, the closest population matches are Chenoweth (1,543 residents, $62,204 income); Coburg (1,541 residents, $89,250 income); Cascade Locks (1,529 residents, $65,357 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Winchester, IL (1,543 residents); Princeton, NC (1,543 residents); Bonneau Beach, SC (1,543 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Schools and households
What does the education layer cover for John Day?
The NCES join finds 1 public school within the city match. 22.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
Matched public schools
1
Bachelor's degree+
22.5%
Poverty estimate
2.8%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
What does the journey to work look like in John Day?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 69.9%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Public transit
0.0%
Work from home
11.0%
Drive alone
69.9%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 688 workers age 16+.
Is John Day growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Recent estimates point downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -40 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -2.4% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Period change
-2.4%
2025 estimate
1,634
2020 estimate
1,674
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Poverty rate A-
2.8%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income C
$75,917
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share D
22.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Cost of living F
103.4 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Violent crime N/A
N/A
No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).
John Day profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Poverty rate: 80/100 (A-) · 2.8%
Household income: 55/100 (C) · $75,917
Bachelor's+ share: 42/100 (D) · 22.5%
Cost of living: 25/100 (F) · 103.4 index
How does John Day compare to other US cities?
Where John Day sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income57% higher than other cities
Home value43% pricier than other cities
Median rent66% 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
Each percentile compares John Day against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Oregon only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Oregon-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places John Day near the bottom of Oregon's cities
Among the 395 Oregon cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, John Day ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares John Day only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#159 of 364
56th percentile in Oregon
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 395
0th percentile in Oregon
Median Home Value
#321 of 366
12th percentile in Oregon
Poverty Rate
#285 of 395
27th percentile in Oregon
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#195 of 395
50th percentile in Oregon
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Oregon only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
57th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How John Day's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$199,400Among the most affordablemore affordable than 57% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
John Day's home-value-to-income ratio: 2.6×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#4,655 of 15,516
More affordable than 70% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#4,123 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 2.6×, John Day sits in the affordable band:
national rank #4,655 of 15,516 and #4,123 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$75,917John Day, OR median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context John Day, OR median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for John Day, OR.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)22.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)2.8%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)56.5%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,543
Median Income
$75,917
Median Home Value
$199,400
Median Age
42.9
Poverty Rate
2.8%
Labor force participation
56.5%
Bachelor's Degree+
22.5%
Climate
Avg Temperature
52.7°F
Annual Precipitation
9.8"
Annual Snowfall
N/A
Schools
Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
John Day's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,674 residents
2021
1,686 residents
2022
1,671 residents
2023
1,671 residents
2024
1,642 residents
2025
1,634 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
69.9%
Carpool
12.8%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
6.3%
Work from Home
11.0%
Based on 688 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Oregon statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $185
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Oregon at $185 (electricity about $85 , water and sewer about $50 ).
These are Oregon statewide averages, not a meter reading for John Day. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Oregon's BEA cost-of-living index is 103.4 (Above Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around John Day is $1,425/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Oregon statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 63.4 / 100 (Moderate).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Oregon statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county John Day sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How John Day compares to similar-size Oregon cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES CCD, 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.