Jobs in the United States → United States guide → Cities → Lakeland

Working in Lakeland, FL

Jobs, pay and daily life in Lakeland, from official statistics with source and year on every table.

In short: Lakeland (Florida): 119,961 residents, median household income $64,185, median rent $1,395, unemployment 5.2%.
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Map: Lakeland in Florida

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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.

119,961residents (ACS 2024)
$64,185median household income
$1,395median rent a month
5.2%unemployment (BLS)
29.4%bachelor's degree or higher
56.4%homeowners

Overview

CITY (Lakeland) Official statistic Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Lakeland is a city in Florida with 119,961 residents. The median household earns $64,185 a year and the median rent is $1,395 a month, which is 26.1% of the median household income. It is part of the Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metropolitan area, where BLS counts 265,280 jobs.

Federal jobs in Florida (1,228) →State guide: FloridaCountry guide

Jobs

LIVE (federal) + METRO Live feed + official statistic Source: USAJOBS (federal jobs only) · BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 · Data: 07/11/2026

There are 1,228 federal postings open in Florida (USAJOBS, state level; we do not have a city filter for them). Private-sector jobs are not in this feed.

Open federal jobs in Florida →

Occupations with the most jobs in the metro (among our 240 niches)

Sort:
Occupation ⇅Jobs ⇅Location quotient ⇅Median pay (year) ⇅Entry (10th pct.) ⇅Top (90th pct.) ⇅Median vs US ⇅
Stockers and Order Fillers9,4001.94$39,690$30,760$57,190+6%
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand8,4401.68$42,800$30,760$48,190+6%
Retail Salespersons8,2201.24$31,820$27,400$44,340-10%
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers7,8202.22$57,090$39,560$80,990-3%
Fast Food and Counter Workers7,3801.12$28,050$27,060$34,630-10%
Registered Nurses6,1401.07$84,030$64,610$102,070-14%
Customer Service Representatives6,0001.35$38,750$31,790$57,090-13%
Cashiers5,5401.05$29,900$27,110$35,600-9%
General and Operations Managers5,1500.86$96,220$47,830$211,760-9%
Office Clerks, General4,4301.05$43,300$30,470$63,070-4%
Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators4,3703.30$48,290$37,800$59,770+4%
Waiters and Waitresses3,7300.96$35,270$27,050$60,030+0%
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners3,5200.93$32,510$28,350$44,090-12%
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education3,2801.38$50,420$50,130$57,500-21%
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General3,0901.18$45,850$33,540$75,700-8%
Nursing Assistants2,9601.20$36,000$33,940$39,720-15%
Construction Laborers2,6901.44$39,470$30,100$55,960-16%
Light Truck Drivers2,6501.58$46,010$29,540$73,060+3%
Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products2,5101.19$62,960$37,580$122,530-13%
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants2,4701.51$39,520$34,890$48,200-14%

Highest-paying occupations in the metro (at least 500 jobs)

Sort:
Occupation ⇅Jobs ⇅Location quotient ⇅Median pay (year) ⇅Entry (10th pct.) ⇅Top (90th pct.) ⇅Median vs US ⇅
Chief Executives5701.63$179,360$60,880$480,280-16%
Computer and Information Systems Managers5500.48$161,180$95,200$218,740-8%
Financial Managers1,2000.84$151,440$74,440$271,740-9%
Sales Managers9600.88$126,890$64,110$229,990-14%
Nurse Practitioners5701.03$125,720$100,970$154,560-5%
Lawyers7300.56$122,870$74,090$233,770-23%
Software Developers9900.34$122,200$76,790$162,230-10%
Medical and Health Services Managers9300.92$107,300$63,490$216,450-13%
Managers, All Other6800.64$106,440$48,160$202,740-25%
Construction Managers6300.97$106,140$60,840$176,860-8%
General and Operations Managers5,1500.86$96,220$47,830$211,760-9%
Project Management Specialists1,1500.63$94,720$56,300$152,300-7%
Computer Systems Analysts5700.65$85,820$61,180$127,390-19%
Registered Nurses6,1401.07$84,030$64,610$102,070-14%
Management Analysts9500.62$79,990$50,240$130,490-21%
Education Administrators, Kindergarten through Secondary5901.05$78,050$63,290$119,130-26%
Accountants and Auditors1,7400.70$76,820$49,450$124,780-8%
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists1,0500.69$76,630$43,390$125,820-3%
First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers1,2001.14$75,440$47,680$114,580-6%
Insurance Sales Agents1,1701.43$74,810$41,600$193,920+20%

Economy

METRO (Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL) Official statistic Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 · BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics · Data: OEWS May 2025; BLS 2026M09

These figures are for the whole Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL metropolitan area, not the city alone.

Sort:
Occupation field ⇅Jobs ⇅Location quotient ⇅Median pay ⇅Median vs US ⇅
Transportation and Material Moving40,4801.73$45,450+2%
Office and Administrative Support31,4701.04$43,780-8%
Sales and Related25,2701.10$35,700-7%
Food Preparation and Serving Related23,4701.01$31,430-10%
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical16,8601.01$80,200-7%
Management15,6400.82$101,260-20%
Educational Instruction and Library15,0100.97$50,160-17%
Business and Financial Operations13,8100.77$74,170-10%
Production13,7700.94$43,550-7%
Construction and Extraction12,6801.16$47,640-20%
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair12,6201.22$53,350-11%
Healthcare Support9,2000.68$36,080-6%
Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance8,5801.11$34,620-8%
Protective Service6,1400.95$47,130-6%
Computer and Mathematical4,6200.51$84,820-22%
Personal Care and Service3,8300.69$30,320-17%
Community and Social Service3,3600.74$51,500-12%
Architecture and Engineering2,4500.55$77,750-22%
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media2,2000.63$47,570-24%
Life, Physical, and Social Science1,6600.66$63,260-23%
Legal1,6300.73$74,590-27%
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry5300.71$34,710-5%

Median pay across all occupations: $46,140 (US $50,980); unemployment 5.2% (2026M09).

Industries where residents work

Sort:
Industry (residents) ⇅Share of employed residents ⇅
Education and health care22.2%
Retail trade14.5%
Professional, scientific, management, administrative12.7%
Arts, entertainment, accommodation, food11.0%
Finance, insurance, real estate8.4%
Transportation, warehousing, utilities7.1%
Manufacturing5.7%
Other services5.3%
Construction5.2%
Public administration3.3%
Wholesale trade2.2%
Information1.4%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining0.8%

Commuting

CITY (Lakeland) Official statistic Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Sort:
How residents get to work ⇅Share ⇅
Drive alone70.4%
Public transit0.8%
Walk3.1%
Work from home14.4%
Commute of 45 minutes or more12.9%

Shares are of workers aged 16 and over; they describe residents, wherever they work.

Pay and cost

CITY + METRO Official statistic Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · BEA Regional Price Parities · Data: ACS 2020–2024; RPP 2024

Sort:
Indicator ⇅Value ⇅
Median household income$64,185
Income per person$35,902
Median gross rent per month$1,395
Yearly rent as share of median household income26.1%
Median home value$249,400
Homeowners56.4%
Poverty rate13.2%
Price level of the metro area (US = 100)97.1
Metro median pay, all occupations$46,140

Does this salary work here? (estimate)

Estimate for a wage earner: 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction (IRS), Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45% (+0.9% above $200,000 single / $250,000 married), and a state rate you set. It ignores credits, pre-tax deductions, local taxes and benefits. Sources: IRS: tax year 2026 inflation adjustments · SSA wage base per Federal Register notice 2025-19763.

State tax: No state tax on wages.

People and education

CITY (Lakeland) Official statistic Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Sort:
Indicator ⇅Value ⇅
Median age38.9
High school or higher (25+)91.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)29.4%
Born abroad10.8%
Labour force participation (16+)56.8%

Where the foreign-born residents come from (by region)

Latin America5,258 (69.1%)
Asia1,228 (16.1%)
Africa519 (6.8%)
Europe421 (5.5%)
Northern America165 (2.2%)
Oceania14 (0.2%)

Work permits are federal: see permits and first steps.

Climate

CITY (Lakeland) Model estimate on a 0.5° grid Source: NASA POWER climatology (MERRA-2, 2001–2025) · Data: monthly means 2001–2025

Sort:
Month ⇅Mean temperature (°C) ⇅Mean temperature (°F) ⇅Precipitation (mm) ⇅
Jan15.05956
Feb17.36351
Mar19.86864
Apr23.07357
May25.97991
Jun27.181216
Jul27.281198
Aug27.281204
Sep25.979166
Oct23.17467
Nov19.36740
Dec17.16356

Satellite-reanalysis climatology on a grid of roughly 50 km, so it smooths local effects (hills, coast, city heat). It is not a weather-station record.

Nearby cities

CITY Calculation Source: straight-line distance from coordinates (Census Gazetteer) · Data: 2024

Sort:
City ⇅State ⇅Distance (straight line) ⇅Population ⇅Median household income ⇅Median rent ⇅
TampaFL33 mi414,575$84,114$1,898
St. PetersburgFL47 mi262,732$75,192$1,663
OrlandoFL49 mi334,871$77,597$1,841
Palm BayFL79 mi130,132$72,614$1,601
Cape CoralFL98 mi215,536$78,104$1,858
Port St. LucieFL110 mi232,491$80,648$1,937
GainesvilleFL115 mi145,702$46,195$1,296
West Palm BeachFL144 mi122,290$73,446$1,772
JacksonvilleFL159 mi1,009,831$72,389$1,568
Coral SpringsFL161 mi136,103$93,602$2,084

Straight-line distance in miles, not driving distance.

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FAQ

How many people live in Lakeland?

119,961 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimate).

What is the median rent in Lakeland?

$1,395 a month (ACS 2020–2024), which is 26.1% of the median household income.

What is the median household income in Lakeland?

$64,185 (ACS 2020–2024, in 2024 dollars).

What is the unemployment rate in Lakeland?

5.2% (BLS metro area 2026M09).

Which state is Lakeland in?

Florida. See the state guide for minimum wage, taxes and pay.

Sources

Sources

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