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Place dossier plate
SheetWA-WALLA-WALLA-WA · Walla Walla, WA 33,766 pop · income 44th pct · 14 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 Walla Walla
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Walla Walla on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Statesboro · lowest
42,884
Statesboro · lowest
42,884 median HH income
23.2% of the leader · rank #1
LeChee · near
65,486
LeChee · near
65,486 median HH income
35.4% of the leader · rank #2
Vinton · near
65,488
Vinton · near
65,488 median HH income
35.4% of the leader · rank #3
Walla Walla · this city
65,493
Walla Walla · this city
65,493 median HH income
35.4% of the leader · rank #4
Panora · near
65,500
Panora · near
65,500 median HH income
35.4% of the leader · rank #5
Canton · near
65,500
Canton · near
65,500 median HH income
35.4% of the leader · rank #6
Leawood · highest
184,976
Leawood · highest
184,976 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, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Walla Walla on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. 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: 33,766.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Walla Walla - the verdict
Nationally, Walla Walla sits in the 44th percentile for household income and the 22nd percentile for safety among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
44th
percentile, household income
73rd
percentile, home value
70th
percentile, median rent
22nd
percentile, safety
📝 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: Walla Walla, WA
33,766 people live in Walla Walla, Washington - a small city by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Walla Walla households earn a median of $65,493 annually, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 10.2%. Home values in Walla Walla run a median of $356,600, and the median resident age is 38.1 years. 28.9% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 53.9% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 154 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Building Boom), up 144% from five years earlier. Crime here tracks close to the national norm: per-100,000 total crime stands at 2498.3 in FBI UCR data, near the national average (a voluntary reporting program, read this as reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Washington carries a cost-of-living premium: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, Washington scores 107.0 (Above Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $1,472 per month. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts Washington's average monthly utility costs around $188 (state average). FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 70.0 out of 100 (High).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Walla Walla'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 population change to within-city variation to comparison shortlist to housing and income to reported crime to work and mobility to schools and households; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Walla Walla, city-specific coverage includes FBI reported-crime rates, within-city Census tract profiles, matched public-school count, commute-mode shares, annual population history, local building permits.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
1. Population change
Is Walla Walla growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
The recent population line is broadly flat. That makes the composition of change more important than the headline count: housing turnover, household size, and age structure can shift even when the total barely moves.
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -216 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -0.6% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 154 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
What can 14 Census tracts reveal inside Walla Walla?
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.
PlainCities matches 14 Census tracts to this city.
Which cities make useful reference points for Walla Walla?
Within Washington, the closest population matches are Spanaway (34,322 residents, $94,028 income); University Place (34,850 residents, $94,952 income); Des Moines (32,545 residents, $89,787 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Englewood, CO (33,774 residents); Deer Park, TX (33,823 residents); Statesboro, GA (33,705 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. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
How far does income reach against housing in Walla Walla?
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 5.4 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 10.2%, 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. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
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.
Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Walla Walla?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 2498.3 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, near the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 10% higher in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
2214.0
Violent rate
284.3
Total reported rate
2498.3
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
What does the journey to work look like in Walla Walla?
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 65.5%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Public transit
0.8%
Work from home
13.1%
Drive alone
65.5%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 15,125 workers age 16+.
What does the education layer cover for Walla Walla?
The NCES join finds 5 public schools within the city match. 28.9% 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 city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
Matched public schools
5
Bachelor's degree+
28.9%
Poverty estimate
10.2%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
Below median income · poverty 10.2% (Above-median poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
107.0 (US=100)
High cost · BEA RPP 2024, Washington average
F
City profile score · Walla Walla, WA
37/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
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.
Bachelor's+ share C
28.9%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Household income D
$65,493
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Poverty rate F
10.2%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime F
284 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Cost of living F
107.0 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Walla Walla profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Bachelor's+ share: 56/100 (C) · 28.9%
Household income: 43/100 (D) · $65,493
Poverty rate: 39/100 (F) · 10.2%
Violent crime: 35/100 (F) · 284 /100k
Cost of living: 15/100 (F) · 107.0 index
Where Walla Walla sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Walla Walla's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Walla Walla highlighted among 11 peers.Read the chart values
Walla Walla, WA (this city): home $356,600, crime 2,498/100k
Englewood, CO : home $534,000, crime 5,908/100k
Deer Park, TX : home $238,900, crime 1,394/100k
Statesboro, GA : home $158,600, crime 2,610/100k
Cibolo, TX : home $324,600, crime 994/100k
Leawood, KS : home $620,400, crime 1,579/100k
Kingman, AZ : home $242,700, crime 3,601/100k
University Place, WA : home $578,100, crime 2,160/100k
Des Moines, WA : home $539,800, crime 3,146/100k
Mount Vernon, WA : home $429,300, crime 1,966/100k
Wenatchee, WA : home $391,200, crime 3,023/100k
How does Walla Walla compare to other US cities?
Where Walla Walla sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income44% higher than other cities
Home value73% pricier than other cities
Median rent70% pricier than other cities
Safety22% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to Washington alone, Walla Walla ranks #97 of 156 Washington cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Walla Walla against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Washington only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Washington-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Walla Walla near the bottom of Washington's cities
Among the 599 Washington cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Walla Walla ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Walla Walla only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#415 of 565
27th percentile in Washington
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 599
0th percentile in Washington
Median Home Value
#341 of 565
40th percentile in Washington
Poverty Rate
#150 of 598
74th percentile in Washington
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#248 of 599
58th percentile in Washington
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 Washington only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
44th percentile nationally for median household income · 22nd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Walla Walla's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Walla Walla's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Walla Walla's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$356,60027th percentilemore affordable than 27% 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
Walla Walla's home-value-to-income ratio: 5.4×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
pressured
> 5.0×
National rank
#13,500 of 15,516
More affordable than 13% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#2,794 of 3,317
Small cities (10,000–49,999)
At 5.4×, Walla Walla sits in the pressured band:
national rank #13,500 of 15,516 and #2,794 of 3,317small cities (10,000–49,999).
Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median, a comparison flag, not a verdict on any household.
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
$65,493Walla Walla, WA median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Walla Walla, WA median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Walla Walla, WA.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)28.9%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)10.2%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)53.9%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
33,766
Median Income
$65,493
Median Home Value
$356,600
Median Age
38.1
Poverty Rate
10.2%
Labor force participation
53.9%
Bachelor's Degree+
28.9%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
2498.3
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
284.3
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
2214.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
5
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Walla Walla's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
34,274 residents
2021
33,854 residents
2022
33,790 residents
2023
33,712 residents
2024
33,917 residents
2025
34,058 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Building Boom
Total Permits (2024)
154
housing units authorized
Single-Family
94
detached homes
Multifamily
60
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
4.6
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
63
57
6
$16.9M
2020
49
33
16
$12.1M
2021
156
50
106
$26.1M
2022
108
52
56
$21.5M
2023
136
120
16
$31.8M
2024
154
94
60
$33.9M
Permit volume increased 144% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
65.5%
Carpool
9.5%
Public Transit
0.8%
Walk
7.8%
Work from Home
13.1%
Other
3.3%
Based on 15,125 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Washington statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $188
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Washington at $188 (electricity about $85 , water and sewer about $55 ).
These are Washington statewide averages, not a meter reading for Walla Walla. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Washington's BEA cost-of-living index is 107.0 (Above Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Walla Walla is $1,472/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Washington statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 70.0 / 100 (High).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Washington statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Walla Walla sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Walla Walla compares to similar-size Washington 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, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, 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.