Sterling, CO

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

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2022 Population

21,302

2.13% 1-year decline

US Senator

Michael Bennet

Democratic Party

US Senator

John Hickenlooper

Democratic Party

2022 Median Age

38.9

2.1% 1-year increase

2022 Poverty Rate

11.7%

3.98% 1-year increase

2022 Median Household Income

$54,864

7.58% 1-year growth

2022 Median Property Value

$203,100

14.7% 1-year growth

2022 Employed Population

10,431

4.57% 1-year decline

About

In 2022, Sterling, CO had a population of 21.3k people with a median age of 38.9 and a median household income of $54,864. Between 2021 and 2022 the population of Sterling, CO declined from 21,765 to 21,302, a −2.13% decrease and its median household income grew from $50,998 to $54,864, a 7.58% increase.

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Sterling, CO are White (Non-Hispanic) (76.3%), Two+ (Hispanic) (7.14%), White (Hispanic) (6.04%), Other (Hispanic) (3.61%), and Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (3.39%).

None of the households in Sterling, CO 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% of the residents in Sterling, CO are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Sterling, CO are Northeastern Junior College (544 degrees awarded in 2022).

In 2022, the median property value in Sterling, CO was $203,100, and the homeownership rate was 71.5%.

Most people in Sterling, CO drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 17.4 minutes. The average car ownership in Sterling, CO was 2 cars per household.

Sterling, CO borders Fort Morgan, CO and Greeley, CO.

United States Colorado

Population & Diversity

Sterling, CO is home to a population of 21.3k people, from which 98% are citizens. As of 2022, 3.7% of Sterling, CO residents were born outside of the country (788 people).

In 2022, there were 10.7 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (16.3k people) in Sterling, CO than any other race or ethnicity. There were 1.52k Two+ (Hispanic) and 1.29k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

98%

2022 Citizenship

97.1%

2021 Citizenship

As of 2022, 98% of Sterling, CO residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.5%. In 2021, the percentage of US citizens in Sterling, CO was 97.1%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been increasing.

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

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Sterling, CO

White (Non-Hispanic)
16.3k ± 40
Two+ (Hispanic)
1.52k ± 372
White (Hispanic)
1.29k ± 325

16.8%

Hispanic Population

3.59k people

16.8% of the people in Sterling, CO are hispanic (3.59k people).

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

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the MSA level, so we are showing data for Colorado.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
206,571 ± 10,957 people
India
22,427 ± 3,670 people
China
17,909 ± 3,280 people

In 2022, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Colorado was Mexico, the natal country of 206,571 Colorado residents, followed by India with 22,427 and China with 17,909.

Foreign-Born Population

3.7%

2022 Foreign-Born Population

788 people

4.26%

2021 Foreign-Born Population

928 people

As of 2022, 3.7% of Sterling, CO residents (788 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 Sterling, CO was 4.26%, meaning that the rate has been decreasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Gulf War (2001-)
645 ± 209
Vietnam
480 ± 114
Gulf War (1990s)
246 ± 123

Sterling, CO has a large population of military personnel who served in Gulf War (2001-), 1.34 times greater than any other conflict.

Economy

The economy of Sterling, CO employs 10.4k people. The largest industries in Sterling, CO are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,603 people), Retail Trade (1,308 people), and Educational Services (1,234 people), and the highest paying industries are Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($75,938), Transportation & Warehousing ($68,125), and Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($64,167).

Males in Colorado have an average income that is 1.31 times higher than the average income of females, which is $67,859. The income inequality in Colorado (measured using the Gini index) is 0.464, which is lower than than the national average.

Employment

Occupations

10.4k

2022 Value

± 793

−4.57%

1 Year decline

± 11.7%

From 2021 to 2022, employment in Sterling, CO declined at a rate of −4.57%, from 10.9k employees to 10.4k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Sterling, CO, are Management Occupations (1,083 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (918 people), and Education Instruction, & Library Occupations (703 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Sterling, CO.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

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

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Colorado (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.

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Industries

Employment by Industries

10.4k

2022 Value

± 793

−4.57%

1 Year decline

± 11.7%

From 2021 to 2022, employment in Sterling, CO declined at a rate of −4.57%, from 10.9k employees to 10.4k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Sterling, CO, are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,603 people), Retail Trade (1,308 people), and Educational Services (1,234 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Sterling, CO, though some of these residents may live in Sterling, CO and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$40,266

Median earning men ± $4,106

$31,651

Median earning women ± $1,698

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2022 are Wholesale Trade ($69,028), Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($65,250), and Public Administration ($59,231).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2022 are Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($58,977), Public Administration ($45,694), and Manufacturing ($42,000).

Employment by Industry Sector

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

Y-Axis

1.73%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 2.87M people employed in Colorado. This represents a 1.73% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 11.9%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in Colorado.

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

51
Other Services (except Public Administration)
39
Retail Trade
35
Construction

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

Depending on the option selected, the visualization shows the number of employees or number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$51.8k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$35.3k
Retail Trade
$20.9k
Manufacturing

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Civics

In the 2020 presidential election, the popular vote in Colorado went to Joseph R Biden Jr. with 55% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (41.6%), followed by Jo Jorgensen (1.6%).

Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper are the senators currently representing the state of Colorado. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Colorado is currently represented by 8 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Presidential Popular Vote Over Time

Voting results are not available for Sterling, CO. Showing the available data for Colorado.

2020 Election Results

Joseph R Biden Jr. (55%)
Democratic Party
Donald J. Trump (41.6%)
Republican Party
Jo Jorgensen (1.6%)
Libertarian Party

In the 2020 presidential election, the popular vote in Colorado went to Joseph R Biden Jr. with 55% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (41.6%), followed by Jo Jorgensen (1.6%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Colorado for each registered party from 1976 to 2020.

Senator Elections

US Senators from Colorado

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Colorado.

Michael Bennet

Senator from Colorado

Assumed office on January 21, 2009
Appointed to the seat following the resignation of Ken Salazar, who had become Secretary of the Interior.

John Hickenlooper

Senator from Colorado

Assumed office on January 3, 2021

Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper are the senators currently representing Colorado.

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 Colorado over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

US Representative Elections

US Representatives from Colorado

Colorado is currently represented by 8 members in the U.S. house.

Members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms, and the following chart shows the how the members for Colorado have changed over time starting in 2008.

Education

In 2022, universities in Sterling, CO awarded 544 degrees. The student population of Sterling, CO in 2022 is skewed towards women, with 514 male students and 932 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Sterling, CO are White (388 and 74.3%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (83 and 15.9%), Two or More Races (24 and 4.6%), and Unknown (12 and 2.3%).

The largest universities in Sterling, CO by number of degrees awarded are Northeastern Junior College (544 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Sterling, CO are Other Electromechanical, Instrumentation, & Maintenance Technology (73 and 13.4%), Liberal Arts & Sciences (72 and 13.2%), and Other Liberal Arts & Sciences, General Studies, & Humanities (50 and 9.19%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2022 there were 1,446 students enrolled in Sterling, CO, 35.5% men and 64.5% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 1,041 records, of which 67.3% were women and 32.7% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Liberal Arts & Sciences
72 degrees awarded
Other Liberal Arts & Sciences, General Studies, & Humanities
50 degrees awarded
General Studies
26 degrees awarded

In 2022, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Sterling, CO was Liberal Arts & Sciences with 72 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Associates Degree from schools in Sterling, CO according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Northeastern Junior College

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

544 degrees awarded

In 2022, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Northeastern Junior College with 544 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

In 2022, 347 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Sterling, CO, which is 1.76 times more than the 197 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 388 degrees mean that there were 4.67 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Hispanic or Latino, with 83 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

Public, 2-year ($4,692) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2022.

Public, 2-year ($653) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2022.

Public, 2-year ($1,800) 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 Colorado.

Measure

In 2022, 0.886% of men over 25 years of age had not completed any academic degree (no schooling), while 0.84% 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 Colorado.

Race

The most common educational levels obtained by the working population in 2022 were Bachelors Degree (1.16M), Some college (997k), and High School or Equivalent (997k).

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 Sterling, CO was $203,100 in 2022, which is 0.72 times smaller than the national average of $281,900. Between 2021 and 2022 the median property value increased from $177,100 to $203,100, a 14.7% increase. The homeownership rate in Sterling, CO is 71.5%, which is approximately the same as the national average of 64.8%.

People in Sterling, CO have an average commute time of 17.4 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Sterling, CO is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Median household income in Sterling, CO is $54,864. In 2022, the county with the highest Median Household Income in Sterling, CO was Douglas County, CO with a value of $139,010, followed by Elbert County, CO and Broomfield County, CO, with respective values of $124,360 and $117,541.

Housing

Property

$203,100

Median Property Value 2022

±$13,527

$5,713

Median Property Taxes

±$447

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 Sterling, CO the largest share of households pay taxes in the < $800 range.

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

Rent vs Own

71.5%

Homeownership

2022

62.6%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2022

In 2022, 71.5% of the housing units in Sterling, CO were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 68.7%.

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

Equity

Income by Location

Use the dropdown to filter by race/ethnicity.

Race/Ethnicity

Highest Median Household Income (Total)

In 2022, the county with the highest Median Household Income (Total) in Sterling, CO was Douglas County, CO with a value of $139,010, followed by Elbert County, CO and Broomfield County, CO, with respective values of $124,360 and $117,541.

The following map shows all of the counties in Sterling, CO 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.

$54,864

Median Household Income

± $4,203

7.99k

Number of Households

± 632

In 2022, the median household income of the 7.99k households in Sterling, CO grew to $54,864 from the previous year's value of $50,998.

The following chart displays the households in Sterling, CO 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 $75k - $100k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Sterling, CO is from Colorado.

0.464

2022 Wage GINI in Colorado

0.465

2021 Wage GINI in Colorado

In 2022, the income inequality in Colorado was 0.464 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.265% decline from 2021 to 2022, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Colorado was lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Colorado in comparison to the national average.

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

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2022

Drove Alone (75.5%)
Carpooled (12.1%)
Worked At Home (7.64%)

In 2022, 75.5% of workers in Sterling, CO drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (12.1%) and those who worked at home (7.64%).

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

17.4 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Sterling, CO have a shorter commute time (17.4 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.7 minutes). Additionally, 3.75% of the workforce in Sterling, CO have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

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

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

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

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

11.7% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Sterling, CO (2.33k out of 20k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Males 6 - 11, followed by Females 55 - 64 and then Females 25 - 34.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Sterling, CO is White, followed by Hispanic 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

92.8% of the population of Sterling, CO has health coverage, with 44.1% on employee plans, 21.7% on Medicaid, 14.4% on Medicare, 10.7% on non-group plans, and 1.94% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Colorado see 1204 patients per year on average, which represents a 0.166% increase from the previous year (1202 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1183 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 234 patients per year.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

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

1,204 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Colorado

Primary care physicians in Colorado see an average of 1,204 patients per year. This represents a 0.166% increase from the previous year (1,202 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Colorado in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2022, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 21.2% under 18 years, 23.5% between 18 and 34 years, 36.8% between 35 and 64 years, and 18.5% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 52.3% were men and 47.7% were women.

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

Uninsured People

7.23%

Uninsured

44.1%

Employer Coverage

21.7%

Medicaid

14.4%

Medicare

10.7%

Non-Group

1.94%

Military or VA

Between 2021 and 2022, the percent of uninsured citizens in Sterling, CO declined by 10.9% from 8.11% to 7.23%.

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

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