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An editorial illustration of Monroe, Washington
Snohomish County · Washington

Monroe, WA

Monroe’s population is rising, but its local job base is moving the other way.

Population
20,930
5% more from 2021 to 2026
Family households
75.9%
±5 points at 90% confidence
Local jobs
7,973
11% fewer from 2018 to 2023
Median income
$110,461
±$6,509 at 90% confidence
City overview

The forces shaping Monroe now.

01
The trajectory

Monroe’s population is rising, but its local job base is moving the other way.

Monroe’s population rose 5% from 2021–2026; its workplace job count fell 11% from 2018–2023. The source periods differ because the two series are released on different schedules.

Seattle already receives 18% of observed resident job destinations. If the split continues, that outside connection—and the trip it requires—will carry more of the household economy.

Population: 2021–2026 · jobs: 2018–2023
02
The local economic engine

Manufacturing leads at 19%, with education close behind at 14%.

Monroe contains 7,973 workplace jobs. Manufacturing accounts for 19% of them. Education is next at 14%.

Industrial land, freight access, and skilled production labor matter in Monroe in ways that an office-focused economic plan could miss.

Workplace jobs: 2023
03
The commute that shapes the city

Seattle matters more to Monroe’s workday than its own city line does.

18% of observed resident job destinations are in Seattle, followed by Redmond at 11%. Only 14% are inside Monroe.

Current GTFS schedules 796 weekday stop departures at 44 stops inside Monroe; that supply still needs to be tested against the route to Seattle, the largest outside job destination. Schedule supply is not ridership.

Workplace flows: 2023 · commute modes: ACS 2024
People

Who lives here—and which households shape demand?

The typical household estimate is 2.8 people. 76% are estimated to be family households, while 20% are estimated to be people living alone.

Average household size
2.8

±0.1 people at 90% confidence

Median age
35.7

±1.3 years at 90% confidence

Living alone
20%

±4 points at 90% confidence

Bachelor’s degree+
30%

Among residents age 25 and older. ±4 points at 90% confidence

Population composition

Who lives here

Estimated share of all Monroe residents. Each percentage uses the city’s total population as its denominator.

White, non-Hispanic63% ±4 pts
Hispanic / Latino, any race18% ±2 pts
Asian Indian5.4% ±3 pts
Two or more races, non-Hispanic5.1% ±2 pts
Black, non-Hispanic3.2% ±0.9 pts
Filipino1.5% ±1 pts
Cambodian0.7% ±0.8 pts
Vietnamese0.7% ±0.8 pts
American Indian / Alaska Native, non-Hispanic0.6% ±0.4 pts
Another race, non-Hispanic0.4% ±0.4 pts
Japanese0.3% ±0.2 pts
Other Asian, not specified0.3% ±0.4 pts
Two or more Asian groups0.2% ±0.3 pts
Chinese, except Taiwanese0.2% ±0.2 pts
Korean0.2% ±0.2 pts
Thai0.2% ±0.2 pts
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic0.1% ±0.1 pts
Laotian0.1% ±0.1 pts
Indonesian<0.1% ±0.2 pts

0% published estimate: Hmong, Mongolian, Okinawan, Taiwanese, Other East Asian, Burmese, Malaysian, Mien, Singaporean, Other Southeast Asian, Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Pakistani, Sikh, Sri Lankan, Other South Asian, Afghan, Kazakh, Uzbek, Other Central Asian, Other Asian, specified. Zero is not proof that no residents identify with that group.

ACS 2020–2024 · 5-year estimates
Dataset
U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates · tables B03002 and B02015
Period
2020–2024
Geography
Monroe Census place
Definition
Race and Hispanic/Latino origin are self-reported Census concepts. Hispanic/Latino may be of any race; the broad display uses non-Hispanic race categories plus Hispanic/Latino of any race.
Method
Every percentage is shown with its 90% margin of error. Detailed Asian estimates use the Asian-alone universe and are divided by the city population for display.
Open the official source ↗
Work

What powers the local economy—and how dependent is it?

Manufacturing (includes, but is not limited to, aerospace) accounts for 19% of jobs located in Monroe. The city’s job base changed +8% between 2010 and 2023.

Jobs by sector

Workplace jobs inside the city—not the industries of residents who commute elsewhere.

Manufacturing (includes, but is not limited to, aerospace)19%
Education (includes academia/research)14%
Construction / Real Estate14%
Retail13%
Hospitality12%

Historical employer snapshot

Major employers in Monroe and the surrounding Sky Valley; not every count is city-only · Historical employer snapshot · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan. The source is older than the current employer publication window; headcounts are historical, not current.

Washington State Department of Corrections — Monroe Complex1,100 (2021 profile) · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan
Monroe School District473 (2021 profile) · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan
Cadman Quarry32 (2021 profile) · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan
Evergreen State FairgroundsHeadcount not separated · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan
EvergreenHealth MonroeHeadcount not published locally · 2021 needs assessment; role confirmed in the 2024 comprehensive plan

City of Monroe community needs assessment and 2044 Comprehensive Plan ↗. Headcounts change faster than Census employment totals.

Housing

What kinds of homes exist—and where is pressure showing?

71% of occupied homes are estimated to be owner-occupied and 29% rented. The firmer current signal is construction intent: 83 homes were authorized in 2025, versus a recent pace of about 86 per year.

Home value profile

What owner-occupied homes are worth

Owner estimates from the 2020–2024 American Community Survey—not listings, recorded sales, or appraisals. The final Census band is open-ended: $2 million and above.

Median estimate$668k±22248.0 at 90% confidence
Middle half of homes$526k–$855kLower to upper quartile of owner estimates
Luxury-home concentration0%≈0 homes · estimated at $2M+
Under $500k20%
$500–749k44%
$750–999k25%
$1–1.49M10%
$1.5–1.99M0%
$2M+0%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year tables B25075–B25078. Values cover owner-occupied homes only and do not measure current asking prices or recent purchase prices.

The housing mix we can estimate confidently

This describes the existing stock. It does not imply that one building type is preferable.

Detached houses71%
Attached houses8%
2–4 unit buildings5%
5+ unit buildings16%
Other<1%
Owner-occupied
71%

±6 points at 90% confidence

Owner cost-burdened
32%

Spending 30% or more on selected owner costs. ±7 points at 90% confidence

Homes authorized, 2025
83

Permit authorizations—not construction starts or completed homes.

Residential buildings, 2025
83

One building can contain one home or many housing units.

Permit activity: U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, final annual estimate for 2025. Housing units authorized are not starts or completions.

Mobility

Where do residents need to go—and who has a real alternative to driving?

Current transit schedules include 44 stops and 796 weekday stop departures inside Monroe. The 2020–2024 ACS separately estimates how workers usually commuted; it does not count every transit trip or describe today's schedule.

Weekday departures
796

Scheduled stop departures in the current covered-feed snapshot—not riders.

Transit stops
44

Matched inside city limits; nearby cross-border stops are separate.

Top outside workplace
Seattle

18% of observed resident job destinations in 2023 LODES.

Work inside the city
14%

Share of observed resident job destinations located in the same city in 2023 LODES.

Where resident workers go

Top observed workplace destinations. 14% work inside Monroe.

Seattle18%
Peak drive: 50–90 min
Redmond11%
Peak drive: 35–70 min
Everett9%
Peak drive: 25–50 min
Bellevue9%

The strongest outside connection is Seattle. Employer or corridor changes there can alter everyday life in Monroe, even when nothing changes inside the city boundary.

How residents usually get to work

Citywide ACS 2020–2024 estimates describe workers’ usual commute—not every trip made today.

Drive alone
68%

Share of workers usually driving alone. ±6 points at 90% confidence

Work from home
20%

Share of workers usually working from home. ±4 points at 90% confidence

Use public transit
0.8%

Usual commute mode—not all transit trips. ±0.7 points at 90% confidence

Commute 45+ minutes
30%

Share of workers with a one-way commute of at least 45 minutes. ±6 points at 90% confidence

For someone choosing a home in Monroe, the practical test is the trip to Seattle, the leading outside workplace destination in the published flows. These citywide shares cannot show whether that trip works from a particular address.

Typical drive times

About how long does it take to get where people go?

Work destinations are selected from observed resident job flows. These are broad, reviewed planning ranges from representative parts of Monroe—not live-traffic or door-to-door predictions.

Starting area
Downtown Seattle employment core

Seattle is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Monroe, representing 15% of matched resident jobs from this city.

50–90 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Monroe employment area

Monroe is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Monroe, representing 11% of matched resident jobs from this city.

5–20 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Local arterial-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.40x circuity factor and an assumed 28 km/h peak-effective / 42 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Overlake employment core

Redmond is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Monroe, representing 9% of matched resident jobs from this city.

35–70 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Everett employment area

Everett is a LODES-selected resident workplace destination for Monroe, representing 8% of matched resident jobs from this city.

30–60 minWeekday morning peak
Details

Highway-dominant corridor: distance converted with a reviewed 1.25x circuity factor and an assumed 45 km/h peak-effective / 70 km/h off-peak effective speed, then widened and rounded to a broad band. The morning inbound peak is shown; the evening outbound return is assumed to fall within the same broad band.

Method, review date, and sources

Planning estimate; actual time varies by departure time, route, traffic, weather, incidents, and closures.

Estimates are derived from reviewed origin/destination coordinates using a documented distance-to-time heuristic (circuity factor and assumed effective speed by corridor type and period), then deliberately widened and rounded to a broad band. No live routing or traffic API was called.

Estimates reviewed 2026-09-10. Starting point: selected representative area.

City boundary and regional context● nearby   ● work destinations
Daily life

Community institutions and local activity

Public schools, libraries, pharmacies, and listed everyday places show part of the local inventory inside Monroe; taxable sales show the scale and direction of local commercial activity. Residents also use places across city lines, so a boundary count is not the same as access.

Local field guide

Places for everyday needs in Monroe

Care, errands, food, fitness, and personal services gathered into one browsable directory.

Hospitals1 in cityView all
Clinics and urgent care11 listedView 8 places
Pharmacies7 listedView all
Coffee15 listedView 8 places
Fitness15 listedView 8 places
Groceries12 listedView 8 places
Convenience9 listedView 8 places
Restaurants80 listedView 8 places
Salons and barbers49 listedView 8 places

Counts reflect current directory records associated with the city, not a complete business census or a measure of access. Large categories show a sample.

Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), snapshot 2026-08-13; Overture Maps Foundation, release 2026-08-19.0; U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (NPPES NPI Registry), snapshot 2026-09-09.

Public library footprint

Monroe Library

Floor area shows the scale of the physical branches. Physical circulation is 2024 checkouts—not visits, unique users, or digital borrowing—and people routinely use libraries across city lines.

Branch floor area
20,000 sq ft

All matched branches must report floor area before a city total is shown.

Physical checkouts
293,515

Annual branch activity; not limited to city residents. All matched branches must report before a city total is shown.

Monroe LibrarySno-Isle Libraries
20,000 sq ft293,515 physical checkouts56 scheduled hours/week

Source: Washington State Library public-library statistics, 2024. System-wide visits, digital circulation, and program attendance cannot be assigned honestly to one branch, so they are not folded into these city totals.

Education footprint

The schools inside Monroe.

Institution counts and enrollment will remain separate. A school can serve students from outside the city, and residents may attend a school across the boundary or elsewhere in their district.

Public elementary2
  • Frank Wagner Elementary SchoolMonroe School District
  • Fryelands Elementary SchoolMonroe School District
Public middle1
  • Park Place Middle SchoolMonroe School District
Public high2
  • Leaders In LearningMonroe School District
  • Monroe High SchoolMonroe School District
Other public programs3
  • Monroe Special Ed PreschoolMonroe School District
  • Out Of District Special EdMonroe School District
  • Sky Valley Education CenterMonroe School District

Public-school names and levels come from OSPI. Private schools, complete IPEDS college coverage, enrollment by level, and graduate destinations are active additions; absence here should not yet be read as “none.”

Retail role

Monroe has an unusually large retail economy for its population.

Retail sales per resident rank among the 80% highest of the cities tracked by Metroscope. That is consistent with a city serving shoppers from beyond its borders, although sales records do not reveal where customers live.

Retail sales per resident, 2024
$20,063

Higher than 80% of 82 tracked cities.

Change from 2023
−4%

Nominal retail-sales change; inflation can account for some or all of an increase.

See the underlying sales totals
Retail trade, 2024
$419.9M

Sales reported by businesses classified in retail trade.

All taxable sales
$773.1M

Includes taxable activity outside retail trade.

Retail share
54%

Retailing industries’ share of all taxable sales.

Tracked-city median
$10,670

Median retail sales per resident across cities with comparable data.

Civic life

In Monroe, voters directly choose who runs City Hall.

Monroe voters elect the mayor separately from the council. The mayor leads city administration, while the council adopts laws, policy, and the budget—so executive accountability sits directly with an elected office.

Government form
Mayor–Council

The mayor is separately elected to lead administration.

Mayor listed
Patsy Cudaback

The separately elected chief executive.

Council representatives listed
7

Current directory entries; vacancies or updates can make this differ from authorized seats.

Incorporated
1903

Code city under Washington law.

Where decisions happen

When does the Monroe council meet?

Regular meeting schedule listed in the current municipal directory:

2nd, 3rd & 4th Tue - 7:00pm

Schedules change and special meetings are separate. Check the city site for the live agenda, staff reports, public-comment rules, and video.

Election record

Where to check Monroe election results.

Regular municipal offices generally return in 2027. Special measures can appear earlier, and charter provisions can differ.

The next data step is city-specific turnout, contested-seat share, ballot measures, and campaign money. Until those are normalized, Metroscope links the official record instead of guessing from partisan elections.

Structure, meetings, and current officials: Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington (MRSC), checked 2026-09-08. Election administration and certified results: the county election offices listed above. Confirm live agendas and officeholders at the source.

Change

What is changing the city’s trajectory?

Population and jobs do not always move together. Reading both helps distinguish a growing employment center from a city whose households are increasingly tied to opportunities elsewhere.

Residents
20,930

5% more from 2021 to 2026

Local jobs
7,973

11% fewer from 2018 to 2023

Retail trade, 2023–2024
−4%

Nominal taxable-sales change; not adjusted for inflation.

Data & details — selected comparable metrics across 82 places
Local jobs
LODES
7,973
1,506656,821
Higher than only 43% of places
Long-run job change
LODES
+8%
−3%+166%
Higher than only 7% of places
Weekday transit departures
GTFS snapshot
796
19256,385
Higher than only 17% of places
Multifamily permitting
Census BPS
Near a 15-year low
Recent annual pace compared with this city's own 2010–2025 record
2BR Fair Market Rent
HUD, county-level
$2,549
FY2027 HUD program benchmark; chart shows FY2020–FY2027 history. Shared across this HUD metro area—not a place-specific market rent.
Work — sector breakdown
Share of local jobs by sector · LODES · workplace location, not resident industry
Manufacturing (includes, but is not limited to, aerospace)19% (1,540)
Education (includes academia/research)14% (1,109)
Construction / Real Estate14% (1,082)
Retail13% (1,023)
Hospitality12% (940)
Healthcare & Social Assistance11% (851)
Other4% (305)
Logistics / Industrial4% (282)
Professional Services (partial technology proxy)3% (235)
Government (Public Administration)3% (232)
Administrative & Support Services3% (209)
Finance1% (101)
Information (partial technology proxy)1% (64)
Where Monroe's workforce lives (inbound)
LODES OD — commuting flows into local jobs
Monroe
26.9%
Everett
10.1%
Marysville
9.7%
Lake Stevens
7.6%
Sultan
6.0%