Housing data for Wainwright, AK

Wainwright, AK has an estimated 718 residents and 206 homes (US Census Bureau, 2020–2024 American Community Survey).

It is a city in North Slope Borough.

33.5% of households rent.

The median gross rent is $833 a month.

Its population grew measurably since 2015–2019 (+45.3%).

Figures last updated on .

Residents
718 (±134)
Housing units
206 (±46)
Households that rent
33.5%
Median gross rent
$833
Residents since 2015–2019
+45.3%

What stands out in Wainwright

Homes heated by fuel oil: 92.3% (±4.8 points) in Wainwright, higher than in North Slope Borough (32.4%).

Median home value: $117,000 (±$26,491) in Wainwright, lower than in North Slope Borough ($218,300).

Median real estate taxes: $1,361 (±$224) in Wainwright, lower than in North Slope Borough ($2,305).

Average commute: 6.0 minutes (±1.7) in Wainwright, lower than in North Slope Borough (13.0 minutes).

Housing in Wainwright at a glance

  • Median rent: $833 median gross rent a month (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Rent burden: 47.0% of renters pay 30% or more of income (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Renters and owners: 33.5% of households rent (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Income and affordability: $93,750 median household income (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Home values: $117,000 median home value
  • Homeowner costs: $1,117 median monthly cost with a mortgage
  • Property taxes: $1,361 median real estate taxes a year
  • Types of homes: 6.3% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
  • Bedrooms: 58.7% of homes have 3 or more bedrooms
  • Age of homes: 50.5% of homes were built before 1980
  • Vacancy rate: 0.0% rental vacancy rate (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Heating fuel: 92.3% heat with fuel oil or kerosene (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Commute and cars: 6.0 minutes average trip to work
  • Growth: +45.3% residents since 2015–2019 (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • How long people stay: 10.9% moved in since 2020 (Small sample: wide margin of error)
  • Crowding and facilities: 34.6% of homes have more than 1 person per room (Small sample: wide margin of error)

Wainwright against North Slope Borough, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
WainwrightNorth Slope BoroughAlaskaUnited States
Residents718 (±134)10,810 (exact)735,706 (exact)334,922,499
Housing units206 (±46)2,642 (±107)328,491 (±442)143,775,355
Households that rent33.5% (±10.6 points)50.9% (±6.0 points)33.2% (±0.7 points)34.8%
Median gross rent$833 (±$186)$1,254 (±$134)$1,419 (±$23)$1,413
Median household income$93,750 (±$29,969)$95,694 (±$16,311)$92,788 (±$1,232)$80,734
Median home value$117,000 (±$26,491)$218,300 (±$20,831)$352,900 (±$3,735)$332,700
Median real estate taxes (a year)$1,361 (±$224)$2,305 (±$370)$3,901 (±$70)$3,119
Built before 198050.5% (±23.4 points)34.9% (±6.5 points)36.9% (±0.7 points)49.7%
Average commute6.0 minutes (±1.7)13.0 minutes (±5.9)19.4 minutes (±0.3)26.4 minutes
Households with broadband78.9% (±9.4 points)75.1% (±4.7 points)91.9% (±0.4 points)91.0%
Median age of residents28.4 years (±4.0)35.0 years (±1.2)35.8 years (±0.1)38.9 years

Wainwright covers 10.3 square miles of land, about 70 residents per square mile (Census Bureau Gazetteer).

How Wainwright has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
2015–20192020–2024Amount of changeVerdict
Residents494 (±83)718 (±134)+45.3%Measurable increase
Housing units165 (±26)206 (±46)+24.8%Not a measurable change
Median gross rent$788 (±$139)$833 (±$186)+5.7%No measurable change after inflation
Median home value$95,000 (±$7,826)$117,000 (±$26,491)+23.2%No measurable change after inflation
Median household income$62,292 (±$15,057)$93,750 (±$29,969)+50.5%No measurable change after inflation
Median owner cost with a mortgage$2,063 (±$2,007)$1,117 (±$70)−45.9%No measurable change after inflation
Median real estate taxes$1,500 (±$305)$1,361 (±$224)−9.3%Down after inflation
Households that rent34.8% (±7.6 points)33.5% (±10.6 points)−1.3 percentage pointsNot a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate0.0% (±33.1 points)0.0% (±30.9 points)0.0 percentage pointsNot a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Crime reported to police in North Slope Borough

Wainwright has no police department of its own in the FBI’s figures, so this is the figure for North Slope Borough as a whole.

In 2025, the police departments that report for North Slope Borough recorded 818 violent and 1,047 property crimes per 100,000 residents.

A county-wide figure describes the whole county, not this place; crime varies from one community to the next.

ZIP codes in Wainwright

ZIP Code Tabulation Areas that cover this place (2020–2024 estimates)
ZIP codeShare of the ZIP’s land in this placeResidentsMedian gross rentMedian home valueMedian household income
99782100%718$833$117,000$93,750

A ZIP code is a mail route rather than a boundary, so the Census Bureau publishes figures for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas built from census blocks; the share column says how much of each one’s land lies in this place.

Places in Alaska most like Wainwright

PlaceMedian gross rentMedian home valueMedian household incomeHouseholds that rent
Metlakatla$775$167,600$72,27929.0%
Sand Point$1,130$189,100$81,56322.2%
Point Hope$1,088$167,000$74,84445.4%
McGrath$1,014$112,500$59,06325.2%
Unalakleet$1,188$221,400$87,29242.1%
Togiak$873$95,000$57,08342.3%

Matched on rent, home value, income, the share who rent, the age of the homes, the share in apartment buildings and the commute, each measured against the spread across Alaska.

HUD Fair Market Rent for Wainwright, fiscal year 2027

North Slope Borough, AK, dollars a month
Studio1 bedroom2 bedrooms3 bedrooms4 bedrooms
$1,108$1,373$1,521$2,090$2,542

HUD income limits for Wainwright, fiscal year 2026

North Slope Borough, AK, annual household income
Household sizeExtremely low (30%)Very low (50%)Low (80%)
1 person$24,300$40,500$64,750
2 people$27,800$46,250$74,000
3 people$34,150$52,050$83,250
4 people$41,250$57,800$92,500
5 people$48,350$62,450$99,900
6 people$55,450$67,050$107,300
7 people$62,550$71,700$114,700
8 people$69,650$76,300$122,100

These are the limits HUD sets for its housing programs in the North Slope Borough, AK, where HUD’s median family income for fiscal year 2026 is $115,600.

A program can use its own limits; tax-credit and local programs often do.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

What you can do on Seayora in Wainwright

One account for renting, owning, managing and fixing homes, with these figures beside you.

Own or manage a rental?

List it, sign the lease and collect rent online, with the figures for Wainwright beside you.

Create a landlord account · See what landlords get

Looking for a place to rent?

Browse homes for rent near Wainwright, save the ones you like and apply online.

Browse rentals · Create a renter account

Do repairs, renovations or maintenance?

Get found by owners and renters near Wainwright, and send estimates and invoices from your phone.

Join as a pro · Find a pro

Questions about Wainwright

What is the average home value in Wainwright, AK?

The Census Bureau publishes the median: $117,000 (±$26,491) for owner-occupied homes in Wainwright (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

What is the average mortgage payment in Wainwright?

The Census Bureau publishes total owner costs rather than the mortgage alone: the median for owners with a mortgage in Wainwright, AK is $1,117 (±$70) a month, including taxes, insurance and utilities.

How much are property taxes in Wainwright?

The median real estate tax paid by homeowners in Wainwright, AK is $1,361 (±$224) a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

How many homes are in Wainwright?

Wainwright, AK has an estimated 206 (±46) housing units, occupied and vacant (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

What is the most common home size in Wainwright?

The most common size is 3 bedrooms, 45.1% of homes in Wainwright, AK.

How old are most homes in Wainwright?

50.5% of homes in Wainwright, AK were built before 1980 (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

Is Wainwright growing?

In Wainwright, the number of residents went from 494 in 2015–2019 to 718 in 2020–2024 (+45.3%), a measurable increase.

What ZIP codes are in Wainwright?

The ZIP code that covers Wainwright is 99782.

What is the median rent in ZIP code 99782?

The median gross rent in ZIP Code Tabulation Area 99782 is $833 (±$186) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey).

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Wainwright city, Alaska (place:82750, in state:02).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B01003_001E, B01003_001M, B25064_001E, B25064_001M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP05_0001E, DP05_0001M, DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP03_0062E, DP03_0062M, DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.

Figures last updated on .

Related