The county economy from official statistics, with source and year on every table.
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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 08/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Iron County is a county of Utah with 62,252 residents. Its economy produced $3,193 million in 2024 (ranked #10 of 29 counties) and had 24,829 jobs with an average annual pay of $48,239 (#18 for pay). The unemployment rate was 2.9% in 2026M09. It is part of the Cedar City, UT micropolitan area (central county).
Iron County produced about $3,193 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 1.1% of the combined output of the 29 counties of Utah that BEA reports (about 1.8% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 10th of 29 on that measure. Per resident that is $51,297, 42% below the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $88,279. In current dollars output grew 3.4% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation. The gap between its output rank (10th) and its output-per-resident rank (25th) shows that population is large relative to the value of what is produced here.
BLS counts 24,829 jobs located in Iron County on average in 2024, spread over 2,224 employer sites (about 11 jobs per site). That is 0.40 jobs for every resident, below the 0.42 of the typical county in Utah, which tells you whether the county is a place people mostly commute to for work or a place they commute from. The average annual pay per job was $48,239, 28% below the average of all counties in the state ($48,239 against $66,894). Average pay is total wages divided by jobs, so it is pulled up by high earners and counts part-time jobs as whole jobs; it is not the pay of a typical worker. The number of jobs rose 2.8% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are retail trade (14.8% of private jobs, $33,676 a year on average), accommodation and food services (14.6% of private jobs, $19,048 a year on average), health care and social assistance (14.2% of private jobs, $44,392 a year on average). Together they hold 43.5% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is finance and insurance at $80,025 a year, followed by manufacturing ($61,633). The county is specialised in several industries: agriculture, forestry, fishing (2.5 times the US share, 511 jobs); construction (1.9 times the US share, 2,522 jobs). A location quotient above 1 means an industry employs a larger share of workers here than in the whole country, so these are the industries where local employers compete hardest for skills. Several of the biggest employers pay well below the county average: retail trade ($33,676), accommodation and food services ($19,048). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Iron County was 2.9%, 8% below the average of the state's counties (2.9% against 3.2%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 33,738. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 2.9% (2026M09) to 3.7% (2026M08); the latest month is preliminary and BLS revises it. These county rates are not seasonally adjusted, so compare the same month across years.
The median household income was $66,247 (ACS 2020–2024), 30% below the state median ($66,247 against $95,166). The guide covers 1 city with this as the main county: Cedar City. Open any of them for rent, home values, commuting and climate.
Counties close to Iron County in output are Box Elder County, Tooele County, Uintah County, Wasatch County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 29 counties of Utah ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 62,252 | 8 of 29 |
| GDP 2024 | $3,193 million | 10 of 29 |
| GDP per resident | $51,297 | 25 of 29 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 24,829 | 8 of 29 |
| Average annual pay | $48,239 | 18 of 29 |
| Job change vs 2023 | +2.8% | 11 of 29 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 2.9% | 10 of 29 |
| Median household income | $66,247 | 24 of 29 |
Federal jobs in Utah (796) →All cities of UtahState guide: Utah
These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.
Cities of this guide whose main county is Iron County.
| City ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ | Median home value ⇅ | Bachelor's+ ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar City | 38,524 | $63,589 | $1,054 | $377,000 | 35.6% |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 2,915 | 14.8% | $33,676 | 1.18 |
| Accommodation and food services | 2,868 | 14.6% | $19,048 | 1.27 |
| Health care and social assistance | 2,792 | 14.2% | $44,392 | 0.78 |
| Manufacturing | 2,523 | 12.8% | $61,633 | 1.24 |
| Construction | 2,522 | 12.8% | $54,939 | 1.94 |
| Administrative and waste services | 1,048 | 5.3% | $35,678 | 0.72 |
| Finance and insurance | 793 | 4.0% | $80,025 | 0.79 |
| Professional and technical services | 791 | 4.0% | $57,284 | 0.46 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 604 | 3.1% | $35,411 | 0.81 |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 511 | 2.6% | $40,162 | 2.54 |
| Wholesale trade | 405 | 2.1% | $67,210 | 0.41 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 405 | 2.1% | $21,145 | 0.97 |
| Real estate and rental | 303 | 1.5% | $41,100 | 0.79 |
| Educational services | 299 | 1.5% | $27,701 | 0.58 |
| Mining, oil and gas | 279 | 1.4% | $55,113 | 2.97 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 250 | 1.3% | $49,129 | 0.24 |
| Information | 165 | 0.8% | $76,192 | 0.35 |
| Management of companies | 119 | 0.6% | $296,965 | 0.28 |
| Utilities | 100 | 0.5% | $122,848 | 1.06 |
A location quotient above 1 means the industry is more concentrated here than in the US. BLS withholds sectors with too few employers.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Labour force | 33,738 |
| Employed residents | 32,766 |
| Unemployed residents | 972 |
| Unemployment rate | 2.9% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 24,829 |
| Employer sites | 2,224 |
Residents employed and jobs located here differ: many residents commute to other counties.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP 2024 ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Unemployment ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt Lake County | 1,196,523 | $153,846 million | $128,578 | 796,203 | $77,495 | 3.2% |
| Utah County | 705,400 | $47,943 million | $67,966 | 295,152 | $62,648 | 3.3% |
| Davis County | 370,924 | $23,322 million | $62,874 | 144,747 | $59,003 | 3.0% |
| Weber County | 269,648 | $18,120 million | $67,197 | 121,786 | $58,684 | 3.1% |
| Washington County | 196,431 | $11,555 million | $58,824 | 86,508 | $48,688 | 3.2% |
| Cache County | 140,046 | $9,088 million | $64,895 | 63,167 | $52,281 | 2.7% |
| Tooele County | 79,347 | $3,249 million | $40,950 | 20,615 | $53,737 | 3.3% |
| Iron County | 62,252 | $3,193 million | $51,297 | 24,829 | $48,239 | 2.9% |
| Box Elder County | 61,246 | $3,553 million | $58,016 | 23,942 | $59,175 | 3.0% |
| Summit County | 42,970 | $6,080 million | $141,492 | 31,820 | $67,235 | 2.6% |
| Uintah County | 37,056 | $2,879 million | $77,693 | 15,177 | $57,108 | 3.2% |
| Wasatch County | 36,642 | $1,875 million | $51,184 | 12,108 | $56,807 | 2.8% |
| Sanpete County | 29,719 | $1,506 million | $50,660 | 9,381 | $44,420 | 3.1% |
| Sevier County | 22,085 | $1,657 million | $75,026 | 9,927 | $47,714 | 3.4% |
| Carbon County | 20,517 | $1,284 million | $62,565 | 8,653 | $50,378 | 4.2% |
| Duchesne County | 20,185 | $1,858 million | $92,055 | 8,970 | $57,898 | 3.2% |
| San Juan County | 14,483 | $823 million | $56,829 | 4,647 | $49,715 | 3.7% |
| Millard County | 13,315 | $1,494 million | $112,214 | 5,495 | $55,610 | 3.5% |
| Morgan County | 12,802 | $575 million | $44,950 | 3,306 | $53,990 | 2.8% |
| Juab County | 12,586 | $895 million | $71,106 | 4,543 | $46,736 | 2.9% |
| Emery County | 10,046 | $1,456 million | $144,902 | 3,675 | $57,193 | 3.5% |
| Grand County | 9,754 | $939 million | $96,260 | 6,934 | $47,058 | 2.7% |
| Kane County | 8,170 | $586 million | $71,745 | 4,062 | $43,909 | 2.6% |
| Beaver County | 7,273 | $587 million | $80,644 | 2,715 | $44,316 | 2.8% |
| Garfield County | 5,219 | $417 million | $79,937 | 2,517 | $41,748 | 4.8% |
| Rich County | 2,631 | $253 million | $96,298 | 1,174 | $43,704 | 2.7% |
| Wayne County | 2,584 | $160 million | $62,050 | 1,232 | $43,295 | 3.4% |
| Piute County | 1,694 | $131 million | $77,460 | 315 | $35,949 | 5.0% |
| Daggett County | 783 | $146 million | $186,985 | 410 | $41,037 | 1.8% |
62,252 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$3,193 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
2.9% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
24,829 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $48,239 (BLS QCEW).