Great Bend, KS

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

2024 Population

25,097

US Senator

Jerry Moran

Republican Party

US Senator

Roger Marshall

Republican Party

2024 Poverty Rate

15.4%

4.49% 1-year increase

2024 Median Household Income

$58,851

3.73% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$126,400

7.85% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

Population & Diversity

Great Bend, KS is home to a population of 25.1k people, from which 97.1% are citizens.

As of 2024, 4.95% of Great Bend, KS residents were born outside of the country (1.24k people).

In 2024, there were 7.79 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (19.8k people) in Great Bend, KS than any other race or ethnicity. There were 2.54k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 708 Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

97.1%

2024 Citizenship

97.8%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 97.1% of Great Bend, KS residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Great Bend, KS was 97.8%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

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

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Great Bend, KS

White (Non-Hispanic)
19.8k ± 65
Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
2.54k ± 487
Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic)
708 ± 108

16.7%

Hispanic Population

4.18k people

16.7% of the people in Great Bend, KS are hispanic (4.18k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Great Bend, KS 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 Kansas.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
84,373 ± 7,029 people
India
14,412 ± 2,940 people
Vietnam
10,201 ± 2,475 people

In 2024, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Kansas was Mexico, the natal country of 84,373 Kansas residents, followed by India with 14,412 and Vietnam with 10,201.

Foreign-Born Population

4.95%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

1.24k people

3.92%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

990 people

As of 2024, 4.95% of Great Bend, KS residents (1.24k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Great Bend, KS was 3.92%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
593 ± 114
Gulf War (1990s)
262 ± 126
Gulf War (2001-)
206 ± 114

Great Bend, KS has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.26 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Great Bend, KS.

Economy

The economy of Great Bend, KS employs 11.9k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Great Bend, KS were Health Care & Social Assistance (1,827 people), Construction (1,250 people), and Retail Trade (1,054 people), and the highest paying industries were Utilities ($109,500), Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($77,857), and Transportation & Warehousing ($71,833).

Employment

Occupations

11.9k

2024 Value

± 749

−1.59%

1 Year decline

± 8.92%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Great Bend, KS declined at a rate of −1.59%, from 12.1k employees to 11.9k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Great Bend, KS, are Management Occupations (1,419 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (1,293 people), and Construction & Extraction Occupations (1,018 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Great Bend, KS.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

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

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Kansas (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.

Industries

Employment by Industries

11.9k

2024 Value

± 749

−1.59%

1 Year decline

± 8.92%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Great Bend, KS declined at a rate of −1.59%, from 12.1k employees to 11.9k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Great Bend, KS, are Health Care & Social Assistance (1,827 people), Construction (1,250 people), and Retail Trade (1,054 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Great Bend, KS, though some of these residents may live in Great Bend, KS and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$48,886

Median earning men ± $1,972

$33,860

Median earning women ± $3,032

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($93,804), Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($86,397), and Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance ($65,508).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($46,823), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($46,604), and Public Administration ($42,180).

Employment by Industry Sector

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

Y-Axis

3.11%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 1.44M people employed in Kansas. This represents a 3.11% 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 10.9%.

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

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

79
Other Services (except Public Administration)
57
Construction
50
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction

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

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$85.4k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$55k
Manufacturing
$51.4k
Construction

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

Education

The student population of Great Bend, KS in 2024 is skewed towards women, with 2,163 male students and 2,929 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Great Bend, KS are White (602 and 64%), Hispanic or Latino (117 and 12.4%), Black or African American (108 and 11.5%), and Unknown (38 and 4.04%).

The largest universities in Great Bend, KS by number of degrees awarded are Barton County Community College (941 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Great Bend, KS are Liberal Arts & Sciences (278 and 29.5%), Nursing Assistant & Patient Care Assistant (118 and 12.5%), and General Studies (61 and 6.48%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2024 there were 5,092 students enrolled in Great Bend, KS, 42.5% men and 57.5% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 3,151 records, of which 58.3% were women and 41.7% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Liberal Arts & Sciences
278 degrees awarded
General Studies
61 degrees awarded
Registered Nursing
28 degrees awarded

In 2024, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Great Bend, KS was Liberal Arts & Sciences with 278 degrees awarded.

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

Universities

Gender

Race

Barton County Community College

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

941 degrees awarded

In 2024, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Barton County Community College with 941 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

In 2024, 372 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Great Bend, KS, which is 0.654 times less than the 569 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2024, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 602 degrees mean that there were 5.15 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Hispanic or Latino, with 117 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 ($2,496) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2024.

Public, 2-year ($1,536) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2024.

Public, 2-year ($1,460) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

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

Housing & Living

The median property value in Great Bend, KS was $126,400 in 2024, which is 0.38 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $117,200 to $126,400, a 7.85% increase. The homeownership rate in Great Bend, KS is 65.2%, which is lower than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Great Bend, KS have an average commute time of 15.2 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Great Bend, KS is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$126,400

Median Property Value 2024

±$11,964

$6,764

Median Property Taxes

±$472

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 Great Bend, KS the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

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

Rent vs Own

65.2%

Homeownership

2024

64.8%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 65.2% of the housing units in Great Bend, KS were occupied by their owner. This percentage declined from the previous year's rate of 66.2%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Great Bend, KS compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

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

$58,851

Median Household Income

± $3,181

10.4k

Number of Households

± 663

In 2024, the median household income of the 10.4k households in Great Bend, KS grew to $58,851 from the previous year's value of $56,733.

The following chart displays the households in Great Bend, KS 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 Great Bend, KS is from Kansas.

0.459

2024 Wage GINI in Kansas

0.458

2023 Wage GINI in Kansas

In 2024, the income inequality in Kansas was 0.459 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.185% growth from 2023 to 2024, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat less even. The GINI for Kansas was lower than than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Kansas in comparison to the national average.

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

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (81%)
Worked At Home (8.66%)
Carpooled (6.89%)

In 2024, 81% of workers in Great Bend, KS drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (8.66%) and those who carpooled to work (6.89%).

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

15.2 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Great Bend, KS have a shorter commute time (15.2 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 1.59% of the workforce in Great Bend, KS have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

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

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

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

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

15.4% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Great Bend, KS (3.79k out of 24.6k 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 Females 6 - 11 and then Females < 5.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Great Bend, KS 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

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

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

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