Ruston, LA

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

Add Comparison

2022 Population

48,323

0.19% 1-year decline

2022 Median Age

28.3

0% 1-year change

2022 Poverty Rate

29.7%

4.67% 1-year increase

2022 Median Household Income

$37,001

3.79% 1-year decline

2022 Median Property Value

$184,300

15.5% 1-year growth

2022 Employed Population

21,178

0.17% 1-year decline

About

In 2022, Ruston, LA had a population of 48.3k people with a median age of 28.3 and a median household income of $37,001. Between 2021 and 2022 the population of Ruston, LA declined from 48,415 to 48,323, a −0.19% decrease and its median household income declined from $38,458 to $37,001, a −3.79% decrease.

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Ruston, LA are White (Non-Hispanic) (53.1%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (37.4%), Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (3.69%), Two+ (Hispanic) (1.46%), and Asian (Non-Hispanic) (1.39%).

None of the households in Ruston, LA reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

98.2% of the residents in Ruston, LA are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Ruston, LA are Louisiana Tech University (2,330 degrees awarded in 2022) and Grambling State University (809 degrees).

In 2022, the median property value in Ruston, LA was $184,300, and the homeownership rate was 51.9%.

Most people in Ruston, LA drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 18.4 minutes. The average car ownership in Ruston, LA was 2 cars per household.

Ruston, LA borders .

United States

Population & Diversity

Ruston, LA is home to a population of 48.3k people, from which 98.2% are citizens. As of 2022, 3.73% of Ruston, LA residents were born outside of the country (1.8k people).

In 2022, there were 1.42 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (25.7k people) in Ruston, LA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 18.1k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 1.78k Two+ (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

98.2%

2022 Citizenship

98.2%

2021 Citizenship

As of 2022, 98.2% of Ruston, LA residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.5%. In 2021, the percentage of US citizens in Ruston, LA was 98.2%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been increasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Ruston, LA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Ruston, LA

White (Non-Hispanic)
25.7k ± 269
Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
18.1k ± 575
Two+ (Non-Hispanic)
1.78k ± 547

3.21%

Hispanic Population

1.55k people

3.21% of the people in Ruston, LA are hispanic (1.55k people).

The following chart shows the 7 races represented in Ruston, LA as a share of the total population.

Foreign-Born Population

3.73%

2022 Foreign-Born Population

1.8k people

3.51%

2021 Foreign-Born Population

1.7k people

As of 2022, 3.73% of Ruston, LA residents (1.8k people) were born outside of the United States, which is lower than the national average of 13.6%. In 2021, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Ruston, LA was 3.51%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Ruston, LA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
730 ± 219
Gulf War (2001-)
508 ± 172
Gulf War (1990s)
378 ± 143

Ruston, LA has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.44 times greater than any other conflict.

Economy

The economy of Ruston, LA employs 21.2k people. The largest industries in Ruston, LA are Educational Services (3,746 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (3,370 people), and Retail Trade (2,941 people), and the highest paying industries are Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($96,641), Utilities ($62,647), and Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($48,690).

Employment

Occupations

21.2k

2022 Value

± 1,291

−0.17%

1 Year decline

± 8.82%

From 2021 to 2022, employment in Ruston, LA declined at a rate of −0.17%, from 21.2k employees to 21.2k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Ruston, LA, are Sales & Related Occupations (2,487 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (2,136 people), and Management Occupations (1,751 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Ruston, LA.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for false.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in the United States (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

View Full Dashboard

Industries

Employment by Industries

21.2k

2022 Value

± 1,291

−0.17%

1 Year decline

± 8.82%

From 2021 to 2022, employment in Ruston, LA declined at a rate of −0.17%, from 21.2k employees to 21.2k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Ruston, LA, are Educational Services (3,746 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (3,370 people), and Retail Trade (2,941 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Ruston, LA, though some of these residents may live in Ruston, LA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$31,336

Median earning men ± $4,356

$21,699

Median earning women ± $1,607

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2022 are Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($67,727), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($47,721), and Manufacturing ($46,705).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2022 are Public Administration ($46,771), Construction ($32,031), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($30,408).

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

460
Educational Services, Health Care & Social Assistance
365
Finance & Insurance, and Real Estate, Rental & Leasing
217
Retail Trade

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

Civics

are the senators currently representing the state of the United States. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming is currently represented by 435 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Senator Elections

US Senators from the United States

Senator from N/AN/A

N/AN/A
N/A
N/AN/A
N/A

are the senators currently representing the United States.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in the United States over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Error: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'concat')

US Representative Elections

US Representatives from Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming

Members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms, and the following chart shows the how the members for Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming have changed over time starting in 2008.

Error: TypeError: electionStateIDs.map is not a function

Error: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map')

Education

In 2022, universities in Ruston, LA awarded 3,139 degrees. The student population of Ruston, LA in 2022 is skewed towards women, with 7,389 male students and 8,508 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Ruston, LA are White (1,671 and 56.6%), followed by Black or African American (941 and 31.9%), Hispanic or Latino (131 and 4.43%), and Unknown (84 and 2.84%).

The largest universities in Ruston, LA by number of degrees awarded are Louisiana Tech University (2,330 and 74.2%) and Grambling State University (809 and 25.8%).

The most popular majors in Ruston, LA are General Business Administration & Management (372 and 11.9%), General Biological Sciences (213 and 6.79%), and Criminal Justice - Safety Studies (177 and 5.64%).

The median tuition cost in Ruston, LA for a public four year colleges is $5,771 for in-state students and $9,141 for out-of-state students.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University

Measure

In 2022 in Ruston, LA, the percentage of applicants admitted was 50.7%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 28.4%. The number of students enrolled in 2022 was 15,897 (46.5% men and 53.5% women).

The line chart shows the evolution of the percentage of applicants admitted, admitted who enrolled or the number of students enrolled according to the option selected in the upper button.

Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2022 there were 15,897 students enrolled in Ruston, LA, 46.5% men and 53.5% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 7,896 records, of which 48.3% were women and 51.7% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

General Business Administration & Management
111 degrees awarded
General Biological Sciences
210 degrees awarded
Criminal Justice - Safety Studies
145 degrees awarded

In 2022, the most common concentation for Bachelors Degree recipients in Ruston, LA was General Business Administration & Management with 111 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Bachelors Degree from schools in Ruston, LA according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

Louisiana Tech University
2,330 degrees awarded
Grambling State University
809 degrees awarded

In 2022, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Louisiana Tech University with 2,330 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

University

In 2022, 1,405 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Ruston, LA, which is 0.81 times less than the 1,734 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2022 the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 1,671 degrees mean that there were 1.78 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 941 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Universities

Public, 4-year or above ($5,771) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2022.

Public, 4-year or above ($3,104) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2022.

Public, 4-year or above ($1,350) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Working Population

Educational Pyramid

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for the United States.

Measure

In N/A, N/A% of men over 25 years of age had not completed any academic degree (no schooling), while N/A% of women were in the same situation.

This visualization shows the gender distribution of the population according to the academic level reached.

Educational Attainment

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for the United States.

Race

The most common educational levels obtained by the working population in N/A were N/A.

This visualization illustrates the percentage distribution of the population according to the highest educational level reached. You can filter the data by race by using the selector above.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Ruston, LA was $184,300 in 2022, which is 0.654 times smaller than the national average of $281,900. Between 2021 and 2022 the median property value increased from $159,600 to $184,300, a 15.5% increase. The homeownership rate in Ruston, LA is 51.9%, which is approximately the same as the national average of 64.8%.

People in Ruston, LA have an average commute time of 18.4 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Ruston, LA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$184,300

Median Property Value 2022

±$14,679

$9,367

Median Property Taxes

±$717

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Ruston, LA the largest share of households pay taxes in the < $800 range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Ruston, LA compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

51.9%

Homeownership

2022

66.8%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2022

In 2022, 51.9% of the housing units in Ruston, LA were occupied by their owner. This percentage declined from the previous year's rate of 52.8%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Ruston, LA compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Income by Location

Use the dropdown to filter by race/ethnicity.

Race/Ethnicity

The following map shows all of the counties in Ruston, LA colored by their Median Household Income (Total).

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$37,001

Median Household Income

± $3,309

18k

Number of Households

± 1,114

In 2022, the median household income of the 18k households in Ruston, LA declined from $37,001 from the previous year's value of $38,458.

The following chart displays the households in Ruston, LA distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the < $10k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Ruston, LA is from Ruston, LA.

N/A Wage GINI in N/A

In N/A, the income inequality in N/A was N/A according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a N/A N/A from N/A to N/A, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat N/A even. The GINI for N/A was N/A than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed N/A evenly in N/A in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in Ruston, LA across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2022

Drove Alone (79.3%)
Worked At Home (9.9%)
Carpooled (7.38%)

In 2022, 79.3% of workers in Ruston, LA drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (9.9%) and those who carpooled to work (7.38%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

18.4 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Ruston, LA have a shorter commute time (18.4 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.7 minutes). Additionally, 0.997% of the workforce in Ruston, LA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Ruston, LA compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Ruston, LA distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Ruston, LA have 2 cars.

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

29.7% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Ruston, LA (13.2k out of 44.5k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 18 - 24, followed by Males 18 - 24 and then Females 35 - 44.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Ruston, LA is Black, followed by White and Two Or More.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Health

93.1% of the population of Ruston, LA has health coverage, with 43.3% on employee plans, 27.1% on Medicaid, 9.98% on Medicare, 11.6% on non-group plans, and 1.15% on military or VA plans.

Coverage

Health Care Diversity

In 2022, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 23.4% under 18 years, 34.2% between 18 and 34 years, 28.9% between 35 and 64 years, and 13.4% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.1% were men and 51.9% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

6.93%

Uninsured

43.3%

Employer Coverage

27.1%

Medicaid

9.98%

Medicare

11.6%

Non-Group

1.15%

Military or VA

Between 2021 and 2022, the percent of uninsured citizens in Ruston, LA declined by 4.51% from 7.26% to 6.93%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Ruston, LA changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Keep Exploring

United States

Nation