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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Saint James Parish is a county of Louisiana with 19,528 residents. Its economy produced $3,330 million in 2024 (ranked #22 of 64 counties) and had 7,650 jobs with an average annual pay of $78,993 (#5 for pay). The unemployment rate was 4.3% in 2026M09. It is part of the New Orleans-Metairie, LA metropolitan area (central county).
Saint James Parish produced about $3,330 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 1.0% of the combined output of the 64 counties of Louisiana that BEA reports (about 0.4% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 22nd of 64 on that measure. Per resident that is $170,527, 139% above the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $71,374. In current dollars output grew -2.5% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation. The gap between its output rank (22nd) and its output-per-resident rank (4th) shows that a few high-value industries or a small population drive the figure.
BLS counts 7,650 jobs located in Saint James Parish on average in 2024, spread over 462 employer sites (about 17 jobs per site). That is 0.39 jobs for every resident, above the 0.31 of the typical county in Louisiana, 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 $78,993, 30% above the average of all counties in the state ($78,993 against $60,637). 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 4.1% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are manufacturing (43.4% of private jobs, $125,699 a year on average), transportation and warehousing (15.3% of private jobs, $92,592 a year on average), retail trade (11.2% of private jobs, $28,020 a year on average). Together they hold 69.9% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is manufacturing at $125,699 a year, followed by transportation and warehousing ($92,592). The county is specialised in several industries: manufacturing (3.7 times the US share, 2,343 jobs); transportation and warehousing (2.5 times the US share, 825 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. Several of the biggest employers pay well below the county average: retail trade ($28,020), accommodation and food services ($16,042), administrative and waste services ($55,193). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Saint James Parish was 4.3%, 13% above the average of the state's counties (4.3% against 3.8%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 8,921. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 4.3% (2026M08) to 5.6% (2026M06); 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 $65,531 (ACS 2020–2024), 8% above the state median ($65,531 against $60,756). 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 Saint James Parish in output are Saint Mary Parish, Iberville Parish, Saint Landry Parish, De Soto Parish. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 64 counties of Louisiana ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 19,528 | 46 of 64 |
| GDP 2024 | $3,330 million | 22 of 64 |
| GDP per resident | $170,527 | 4 of 64 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 7,650 | 38 of 64 |
| Average annual pay | $78,993 | 5 of 64 |
| Job change vs 2023 | -4.1% | 62 of 64 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 4.3% | 43 of 64 |
| Median household income | $65,531 | 17 of 64 |
Federal jobs in Louisiana (780) →All cities of LouisianaState guide: Louisiana
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 80 largest places of Louisiana 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) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 2,343 | 43.4% | $125,699 | 3.73 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 825 | 15.3% | $92,592 | 2.55 |
| Retail trade | 603 | 11.2% | $28,020 | 0.79 |
| Construction | 490 | 9.1% | $73,299 | 1.22 |
| Accommodation and food services | 320 | 5.9% | $16,042 | 0.46 |
| Administrative and waste services | 204 | 3.8% | $55,193 | 0.45 |
| Wholesale trade | 142 | 2.6% | $96,454 | 0.47 |
| Finance and insurance | 126 | 2.3% | $57,072 | 0.41 |
| Management of companies | 123 | 2.3% | $120,053 | 0.95 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 100 | 1.9% | $33,437 | 0.78 |
| Professional and technical services | 92 | 1.7% | $84,015 | 0.17 |
| Real estate and rental | 28 | 0.5% | $73,966 | 0.24 |
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 | 8,921 |
| Employed residents | 8,540 |
| Unemployed residents | 381 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.3% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 7,650 |
| Employer sites | 462 |
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 ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Baton Rouge Parish | 452,938 | $47,132 million | $104,059 | 270,603 | $66,778 | 3.7% |
| Jefferson Parish | 430,920 | $31,830 million | $73,864 | 184,764 | $63,803 | 3.6% |
| Orleans Parish | 371,853 | $30,835 million | $82,924 | 188,050 | $67,626 | 4.2% |
| Saint Tammany Parish | 272,421 | $17,382 million | $63,807 | 96,674 | $59,351 | 3.6% |
| Lafayette Parish | 247,997 | $19,778 million | $79,752 | 137,173 | $58,120 | 3.3% |
| Caddo Parish | 230,004 | $17,943 million | $78,011 | 108,246 | $57,843 | 3.8% |
| Calcasieu Parish | 207,088 | $18,357 million | $88,646 | 88,649 | $61,711 | 3.9% |
| Ouachita Parish | 158,480 | $9,307 million | $58,726 | 69,384 | $50,059 | 3.8% |
| Livingston Parish | 148,115 | $4,247 million | $28,674 | 31,123 | $46,193 | 3.4% |
| Tangipahoa Parish | 136,738 | $6,435 million | $47,064 | 47,214 | $46,783 | 4.4% |
| Ascension Parish | 130,314 | $12,654 million | $97,107 | 50,590 | $71,805 | 3.3% |
| Bossier Parish | 129,789 | $7,656 million | $58,990 | 44,354 | $52,165 | 3.5% |
| Rapides Parish | 127,527 | $7,414 million | $58,140 | 56,422 | $51,777 | 3.6% |
| Terrebonne Parish | 106,186 | $7,139 million | $67,228 | 47,894 | $62,320 | 3.6% |
| Lafourche Parish | 96,252 | $6,287 million | $65,320 | 34,853 | $67,112 | 3.6% |
| Saint Landry Parish | 81,670 | $3,178 million | $38,908 | 23,554 | $47,117 | 4.6% |
| Iberia Parish | 68,599 | $3,822 million | $55,721 | 24,074 | $57,316 | 4.1% |
| Vermilion Parish | 57,123 | $1,950 million | $34,135 | 12,560 | $48,191 | 3.5% |
| Acadia Parish | 56,955 | $2,067 million | $36,296 | 14,380 | $45,093 | 3.7% |
| Saint Charles Parish | 51,396 | $12,725 million | $247,584 | 26,212 | $97,088 | 3.6% |
| Saint Martin Parish | 51,353 | $1,973 million | $38,413 | 12,308 | $53,750 | 3.6% |
| Lincoln Parish | 48,174 | $2,777 million | $57,637 | 18,599 | $46,245 | 4.2% |
| Saint Mary Parish | 47,828 | $3,528 million | $73,757 | 19,838 | $61,932 | 4.2% |
| Vernon Parish | 47,117 | $2,698 million | $57,270 | 12,826 | $48,821 | 4.3% |
| Washington Parish | 45,120 | $1,772 million | $39,269 | 11,134 | $46,079 | 4.3% |
| Saint Bernard Parish | 44,419 | $1,744 million | $39,262 | 11,254 | $61,869 | 4.1% |
| Saint John the Baptist Parish | 40,743 | $4,073 million | $99,980 | 13,187 | $72,947 | 4.7% |
| Avoyelles Parish | 38,905 | $1,177 million | $30,260 | 9,801 | $42,336 | 4.2% |
| Natchitoches Parish | 36,693 | $2,047 million | $55,774 | 14,311 | $46,001 | 5.1% |
| Beauregard Parish | 36,676 | $1,972 million | $53,758 | 9,062 | $50,147 | 3.8% |
| Webster Parish | 35,820 | $1,561 million | $43,593 | 11,054 | $49,290 | 4.5% |
| Evangeline Parish | 32,060 | $1,177 million | $36,700 | 7,827 | $43,671 | 4.1% |
| Jefferson Davis Parish | 31,924 | $1,046 million | $32,757 | 8,020 | $44,133 | 3.8% |
| Iberville Parish | 29,815 | $3,436 million | $115,253 | 16,461 | $87,754 | 4.1% |
| West Baton Rouge Parish | 27,974 | $2,340 million | $83,656 | 13,248 | $67,548 | 3.7% |
| De Soto Parish | 27,026 | $2,895 million | $107,118 | 8,423 | $66,608 | 4.0% |
| Morehouse Parish | 24,551 | $755 million | $30,743 | 6,213 | $44,568 | 5.2% |
| Plaquemines Parish | 22,803 | $4,007 million | $175,711 | 12,528 | $88,198 | 3.4% |
| Allen Parish | 22,477 | $1,080 million | $48,070 | 7,378 | $49,734 | 4.1% |
| Grant Parish | 22,095 | $576 million | $26,068 | 3,426 | $55,612 | 3.7% |
| Sabine Parish | 21,977 | $1,249 million | $56,833 | 5,336 | $45,249 | 4.2% |
| Union Parish | 20,821 | $752 million | $36,127 | 5,454 | $42,245 | 4.2% |
| Assumption Parish | 20,484 | $735 million | $35,862 | 3,944 | $57,400 | 3.6% |
| Pointe Coupee Parish | 20,217 | $1,079 million | $53,350 | 5,461 | $52,812 | 3.9% |
| Richland Parish | 19,822 | $857 million | $43,253 | 6,232 | $43,083 | 4.4% |
| Saint James Parish | 19,528 | $3,330 million | $170,527 | 7,650 | $78,993 | 4.3% |
| Franklin Parish | 19,408 | $619 million | $31,898 | 4,650 | $38,451 | 4.6% |
| East Feliciana Parish | 19,271 | $687 million | $35,629 | 5,105 | $57,732 | 3.8% |
| Concordia Parish | 18,174 | $715 million | $39,351 | 5,266 | $45,993 | 5.0% |
| West Feliciana Parish | 15,327 | $1,274 million | $83,149 | 4,914 | $71,626 | 2.8% |
| Jackson Parish | 14,884 | $604 million | $40,563 | 3,866 | $54,041 | 4.0% |
| La Salle Parish | 14,789 | $634 million | $42,850 | 4,680 | $48,856 | 3.3% |
| Claiborne Parish | 13,833 | $516 million | $37,274 | 2,992 | $47,473 | 5.3% |
| Winn Parish | 13,467 | $702 million | $52,140 | 4,417 | $48,856 | 4.2% |
| Bienville Parish | 12,638 | $825 million | $65,251 | 3,868 | $51,581 | 4.9% |
| Saint Helena Parish | 10,858 | $264 million | $24,335 | 1,643 | $50,007 | 5.5% |
| Madison Parish | 9,513 | $464 million | $48,774 | 3,163 | $38,648 | 5.3% |
| Caldwell Parish | 9,500 | $249 million | $26,244 | 2,242 | $41,701 | 4.4% |
| West Carroll Parish | 9,464 | $237 million | $25,017 | 1,997 | $42,812 | 5.2% |
| Catahoula Parish | 8,583 | $235 million | $27,407 | 2,264 | $38,908 | 4.5% |
| Red River Parish | 7,443 | $990 million | $133,035 | 2,502 | $48,864 | 4.3% |
| East Carroll Parish | 7,072 | $166 million | $23,441 | 1,427 | $41,831 | 9.1% |
| Cameron Parish | 5,015 | $1,057 million | $210,707 | 4,009 | $116,309 | 3.8% |
| Tensas Parish | 3,935 | $160 million | $40,667 | 815 | $44,513 | 5.9% |
19,528 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$3,330 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
4.3% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
7,650 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $78,993 (BLS QCEW).