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.
Waldo County is a county of Maine with 40,192 residents. Its economy produced $1,998 million in 2024 (ranked #12 of 16 counties) and had 11,273 jobs with an average annual pay of $54,674 (#9 for pay). The unemployment rate was 3.4% in 2026M09.
Waldo County produced about $1,998 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 2.0% of the combined output of the 16 counties of Maine that BEA reports (about 2.9% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 12th of 16 on that measure. Per resident that is $49,716, 30% below the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $71,460. In current dollars output grew 2.8% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation.
BLS counts 11,273 jobs located in Waldo County on average in 2024, spread over 1,459 employer sites (about 8 jobs per site). That is 0.28 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 $54,674, 11% below the average of all counties in the state ($54,674 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 2.4% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are retail trade (19.7% of private jobs, $37,692 a year on average), health care and social assistance (19.0% of private jobs, $61,809 a year on average), manufacturing (12.6% of private jobs, $56,492 a year on average). Together they hold 51.3% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is finance and insurance at $87,145 a year, followed by professional and technical services ($86,585). The county is specialised in several industries: management of companies (4.8 times the US share, 921 jobs); retail trade (1.5 times the US share, 1,681 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 ($37,692), accommodation and food services ($28,315). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Waldo County was 3.4%, 9% above the average of the state's counties (3.4% against 3.1%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 18,233. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 2.9% (2026M06) to 5.0% (2026M02); 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 $72,782 (ACS 2020–2024), about the same as the state median ($72,782 against $74,733). The guide covers 1 city with this as the main county: Belfast. Open any of them for rent, home values, commuting and climate.
Counties close to Waldo County in output are Oxford County, Somerset County, Lincoln County, Franklin County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 16 counties of Maine ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 40,192 | 11 of 16 |
| GDP 2024 | $1,998 million | 12 of 16 |
| GDP per resident | $49,716 | 11 of 16 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 11,273 | 12 of 16 |
| Average annual pay | $54,674 | 9 of 16 |
| Job change vs 2023 | -2.4% | 16 of 16 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 3.4% | 9 of 16 |
| Median household income | $72,782 | 6 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.
Cities of this guide whose main county is Waldo County.
| City ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ | Median home value ⇅ | Bachelor's+ ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast | 6,986 | $67,679 | $962 | $340,900 | 42.9% |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 1,681 | 19.7% | $37,692 | 1.49 |
| Health care and social assistance | 1,622 | 19.0% | $61,809 | 1.00 |
| Manufacturing | 1,081 | 12.6% | $56,492 | 1.17 |
| Management of companies | 921 | 10.8% | $82,927 | 4.85 |
| Accommodation and food services | 836 | 9.8% | $28,315 | 0.82 |
| Finance and insurance | 556 | 6.5% | $87,145 | 1.22 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 467 | 5.5% | $43,757 | 1.38 |
| Professional and technical services | 376 | 4.4% | $86,585 | 0.48 |
| Administrative and waste services | 368 | 4.3% | $45,506 | 0.55 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 238 | 2.8% | $61,055 | 0.50 |
| Educational services | 171 | 2.0% | $47,606 | 0.73 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 150 | 1.8% | $34,269 | 0.79 |
| Real estate and rental | 85 | 1.0% | $38,762 | 0.49 |
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 | 18,233 |
| Employed residents | 17,609 |
| Unemployed residents | 624 |
| Unemployment rate | 3.4% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 11,273 |
| Employer sites | 1,459 |
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% |
40,192 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$1,998 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
3.4% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
11,273 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $54,674 (BLS QCEW).