Lake County, Oregon Demographics 2026

Population Overview

Lake County is located in Oregon with a total population of 8,254. It is the 30th most populous county out of 36 in Oregon. The county encompasses 5 Census-designated places.

Age Demographics

The median age in Lake County is 45.9 years. This is 14% higher than the state median of 40.1 years.

Economy, Income & Housing

The median household income in Lake County is $61,222. This is 24% lower than the state median of $80,426. It is also 22% lower than the national median of $78,538. The poverty rate stands at 17.8%. This is 50% higher than the state poverty rate of 11.9%. The unemployment rate is 4.4%. This is 18% lower than the state rate of 5.4%. The median home value is $219,400. Housing costs are 52% lower than the state median of $454,200. The home-value-to-income ratio is 3.6x. 61.5% of occupied housing units are owner-occupied. This homeownership rate is 3% lower than the state average of 63.4%.

Race & Ethnicity

The largest racial or ethnic group in Lake County is White (non-Hispanic), making up 80.6% of the population. Hispanic or Latino residents account for 10.3%. The Black or African American population (0.5%) is well below the state average of 1.8%. The Asian population (0.3%) is well below the state average of 4.4%.

Education

20.9% of residents aged 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree or higher. This is 42% lower than the state rate of 36.2%. Nationally, 35.0% of adults hold at least a bachelor's degree. The high school graduation rate (or equivalent) is 89.3%.

Data Sources & Methodology

All figures for Lake County come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates (2019-2023), with comparisons drawn against Oregon and national averages from the same dataset. See our methodology page for how each metric is defined, or data.census.gov for official tables with margins of error.