The county economy from official statistics, with source and year on every table.
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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Lincoln County is a county of Maine with 36,099 residents. Its economy produced $1,811 million in 2024 (ranked #13 of 16 counties) and had 11,252 jobs with an average annual pay of $53,238 (#11 for pay). The unemployment rate was 3.1% in 2026M09.
Lincoln County produced about $1,811 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 1.8% of the combined output of the 16 counties of Maine that BEA reports (about 2.6% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 13th of 16 on that measure. Per resident that is $50,165, 30% below the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $71,460. In current dollars output grew 3.9% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation.
BLS counts 11,252 jobs located in Lincoln County on average in 2024, spread over 1,798 employer sites (about 6 jobs per site). That is 0.31 jobs for every resident, below the 0.39 of the typical county in Maine, which tells you whether the county is a place people mostly commute to for work or a place they commute from. The average annual pay per job was $53,238, 13% below the average of all counties in the state ($53,238 against $61,512). Average pay is total wages divided by jobs, so it is pulled up by high earners and counts part-time jobs as whole jobs; it is not the pay of a typical worker. The number of jobs fell 1.1% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are retail trade (20.1% of private jobs, $38,852 a year on average), health care and social assistance (17.7% of private jobs, $63,435 a year on average), accommodation and food services (14.8% of private jobs, $37,409 a year on average). Together they hold 52.6% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is professional and technical services at $86,565 a year, followed by health care and social assistance ($63,435). The county is specialised in several industries: retail trade (1.6 times the US share, 1,826 jobs); construction (1.5 times the US share, 860 jobs). A location quotient above 1 means an industry employs a larger share of workers here than in the whole country, so these are the industries where local employers compete hardest for skills.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Lincoln County was 3.1%, about the same as the average of the state's counties (3.1% against 3.1%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 16,838. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 2.6% (2026M06) to 4.2% (2026M01); the latest month is preliminary and BLS revises it. These county rates are not seasonally adjusted, so compare the same month across years.
The median household income was $76,875 (ACS 2020–2024), about the same as the state median ($76,875 against $74,733). None of the largest places of the guide has this as its main county, which usually means a smaller or more rural county; the figures above still describe the whole county.
Counties close to Lincoln County in output are Somerset County, Waldo County, Franklin County, Washington County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 16 counties of Maine ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 36,099 | 13 of 16 |
| GDP 2024 | $1,811 million | 13 of 16 |
| GDP per resident | $50,165 | 10 of 16 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 11,252 | 13 of 16 |
| Average annual pay | $53,238 | 11 of 16 |
| Job change vs 2023 | -1.1% | 13 of 16 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 3.1% | 5 of 16 |
| Median household income | $76,875 | 4 of 16 |
Federal jobs in Maine (185) →All cities of MaineState guide: Maine
These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.
None of the 40 largest places of Maine has this as its main county, so the guide has no city page here. County figures on the other tabs are complete.
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 1,826 | 20.1% | $38,852 | 1.62 |
| Health care and social assistance | 1,604 | 17.7% | $63,435 | 0.99 |
| Accommodation and food services | 1,342 | 14.8% | $37,409 | 1.31 |
| Construction | 860 | 9.5% | $59,461 | 1.46 |
| Manufacturing | 736 | 8.1% | $53,281 | 0.80 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 463 | 5.1% | $41,219 | 1.37 |
| Professional and technical services | 439 | 4.8% | $86,565 | 0.56 |
| Administrative and waste services | 416 | 4.6% | $60,586 | 0.63 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 319 | 3.5% | $47,469 | 1.69 |
| Educational services | 309 | 3.4% | $42,630 | 1.33 |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 262 | 2.9% | $44,682 | 2.88 |
| Management of companies | 182 | 2.0% | $120,866 | 0.96 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 162 | 1.8% | $48,049 | 0.34 |
| Information | 146 | 1.6% | $66,709 | 0.69 |
A location quotient above 1 means the industry is more concentrated here than in the US. BLS withholds sectors with too few employers.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Labour force | 16,838 |
| Employed residents | 16,323 |
| Unemployed residents | 515 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.1% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 11,252 |
| Employer sites | 1,798 |
Residents employed and jobs located here differ: many residents commute to other counties.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP 2024 ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Unemployment ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cumberland County | 308,827 | $34,616 million | $112,089 | 192,475 | $71,351 | 2.7% |
| York County | 216,731 | $13,650 million | $62,981 | 79,378 | $61,811 | 2.8% |
| Penobscot County | 154,710 | $9,643 million | $62,333 | 71,983 | $55,593 | 3.4% |
| Kennebec County | 126,808 | $8,569 million | $67,576 | 62,487 | $60,846 | 3.2% |
| Androscoggin County | 113,423 | $7,050 million | $62,156 | 48,676 | $58,507 | 3.3% |
| Aroostook County | 67,058 | $3,670 million | $54,728 | 25,999 | $51,148 | 4.0% |
| Oxford County | 59,255 | $2,577 million | $43,484 | 17,009 | $50,809 | 3.7% |
| Hancock County | 56,460 | $3,681 million | $65,200 | 23,631 | $53,780 | 2.8% |
| Somerset County | 50,959 | $2,439 million | $47,861 | 16,034 | $55,148 | 4.1% |
| Knox County | 41,003 | $2,633 million | $64,206 | 16,874 | $55,720 | 3.2% |
| Waldo County | 40,192 | $1,998 million | $49,716 | 11,273 | $54,674 | 3.4% |
| Sagadahoc County | 37,285 | $3,088 million | $82,820 | 17,149 | $63,193 | 2.6% |
| Lincoln County | 36,099 | $1,811 million | $50,165 | 11,252 | $53,238 | 3.1% |
| Washington County | 31,331 | $1,474 million | $47,053 | 10,211 | $50,219 | 4.5% |
| Franklin County | 30,413 | $1,509 million | $49,621 | 10,518 | $48,419 | 3.9% |
| Piscataquis County | 17,263 | $766 million | $44,355 | 5,230 | $47,151 | 4.7% |
36,099 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$1,811 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
3.1% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
11,252 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $53,238 (BLS QCEW).