COMMUNITY OVERVIEW
As you review the upcoming data, you will see that some findings are broken down into geographic areas. The map on this page can be used as reference to better understand the areas included in each region. A detailed listing of ZIP codes can be found in the Indicators Index at the end of this report.
Primary language spoken at home
Median household income has dropped more than 5% since our last survey. With members of our community continually indicating higher-than-average financial insecurity when compared to the rest of the nation, this drop is a concerning development.
DROP IN MedianHousehold income
UNEMPLOYMENTUnemployment jumped to 4.2% after having rested at 3.2% for our last two reports. It is difficult to determine if the decreases in employment and average household income are correlated or coincidental.
More than 20% of East Baton Rouge's population lives beneath poverty line, an increase from 18.5% last year.
LIVE beneathpoverty line1 IN 4 children
LIVEbeneath
poverty lineChildren are the most impacted age group, with one quarter of all children in EBR living beneath the poverty line.
Percentage of EBR RESIDENTS living beneth poverty line BY RACE OR ORIGIN
quality of life
The unique blend of culture, people, quality of life, and economic factors help Baton Rouge shine. When asked what makes EBR a great place to live, answers related to people ranked #1, accounting for 27% of responses.
Culture and quality of life were next in line at 20% and 15% respectively. While this ranking order has held true year over year, the gap between first place and the rest of the podium is more pronounced than in recent years.
Interestingly, last year 1 in 3 people didn’t offer up any answer when asked what makes the parish a great place to live. This year that number plummeted to 1 in 5. Increased visibility of the “Better in BTR” campaign may be a contributing factor in helping residents take pride in our community.
What makes EBR a great place to live?
which improvements could help
make Baton Rouge more appealing
to newcomers? Reducing crime sits atop the podium for the fourth year in a row. The percentage of residents prioritizing this jumped 33% since last year. Despite being tied for second place with improving public schools and reducing local taxes, emphasis on improving roads and traffic fell notably compared to last year’s pollin
AIRPORT PASSENGERS 
The number of passengers flying into or out of BTR in 2024 jumped almost 11% since the prior year, completing a multi-year climb to exceed pre-pandemic passenger counts.
How many
close friends
would you say
you have? East Baton Rouge residents have, on average, about 7 close friends. This is double the number reported nationwide.
Commuting habitsResidents in East Baton Rouge drive alone to work more often that in the rest of the country. People across the nation are 5x more likely to bike to work and 2x more likely to take public transportation than Baton Rougians.
Baton Rouge’s overdependence on individual vehicles likely worsens traffic and road quality in the parish, all while driving up the perceived need for parking areas, which can diminish physical development best-practices that are often found in highly walkable communities.
How residents in East Baton
Rouge Parish get to work?
recreational assets
Library circulationThough computer and Wi-Fi logins at the library dipped slightly last year, digital downloads and total circulation for the library both saw a year-over-year increase. Actual digital downloads are likely higher, as the reported value only includes e-books and audio books. Music and other streaming media downloads are not tracked.
THE LIBRARY WELCOMED
1,758,026 VISITORS THROUGH ITS
DOORS IN 2024
When your child(ren) grow
into adults, where do you
prefer they live?About half of our respondents indicated a child or children under the age of 18 lived in their household. When these respondents were asked where they want those children to live as adults, about 1 in 4 said they want their kids to stay in East Baton Rouge Parish as adults; this is a 30% increase since last year.
The percentage of parents who want their children to leave is half of what it was last year. A majority of parents chose not to answer or said they had no preference; this cumulative total is relatively unchanged since last year.
Is Baton Rouge a place where
children HAVE A CHANCE to earn
more than their parents?
the 5% who want their kids to MOVE SOMEWHERE ELSEwere asked WHAT WOULD CHANGE THEIR MIND
HOUSING
Baton Rouge’s housing market is primarily comprised of single-family homes. About one third of the inventory in the parish is multifamily housing such as duplexes or apartments.
HOW CONCERNED ARE YOUABOUT THE COST OF HOUSING58% of respondents are somewhat or very concerned about the cost of housing. When you break this into subgroups, a majority of respondents from nearly every demographic sub-category still indicate they are concerned about housing costs.
Of the more than 40 sub-groups we evaluated in this survey, only five had a minority of respondents indicate they were very or somewhat concerned.
civic engagement
direction of the parishWhile the number of people pleased with the direction of the parish has remained fairly steady since last year, more citizens lack confidence in the parish’s future direction than in 2024.
pace of progress44% of citizens think the pace of progress in the parish is too slow; this is the second lowest number since we started asking this question in 2009. Residents most displeased with the pace are those with no political party identification (59%), people making more than $50,000 annually (54%) and people ages 18-34 (54%).
Have you volunteered in
the past 12 months?Though crime remains top of mind for many residents, participation in crime watch groups saw a decrease, with 30% fewer residents indicating they volunteer with this type of organization than in our last poll. Participation in parents' associations increased by 50% and neighborhood watch participation increased by 20% since last year.
The political climateStatewide voter registration remains unchanged since last year’s report with 45% of voters registered as Democrats, 27% as Republicans, and 27% having no party affiliation. Survey responses diverge slightly from registrations. Democratic or nonpartisan leanings increased when compared to last year, with fewer people identifying as Republican and more people answering the question overall. However —whether they are registered to vote or not— people seem to be leaning away from a two-party system.
Starting in May 2026, the offices of U.S. House, U.S. Senate, the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Public Service Commission, and the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education will be subject to closed primary elections. This means that the candidates on a voter’s primary ballot will be limited to those of the voter’s party affiliation. “No Party” voters who choose to participate in the closed-party primary will be able to select a Republican or Democratic ballot at their polling place and must stay with that party through any necessary runoff.
Do you consider
yourselfconservative,
moderate, or
liberal?
How much influence do you feeLyou
have over your elected officials?Most survey respondents feel that they have a moderate or strong influence on the officials elected to represent them at a local and state level.
That flips for officials elected at the federal level, with a slim majority indicating they have little to no influence on the actions of their elected representatives in Washington.
This opinion is held most strongly by Black respondents; 67% indicated they have little to no influence federally, compared to 40% of white respondents.
TRUSTED INSTITUTIONSWhen asked which local institutions they trust to make EBR a better place to live, residents indicated that nonprofits and religious organizations take the top prize. Local government made a rebound this year; in 2024 it was the only polled entity that was not trusted by a majority of respondents.
ALL RESPONDENTS
Trust in all organization types are lower for Black respondents but higher for white respondents. Both businesses and government saw big gains in trust from Black people since last year.
BLACK RESPONDENTS
WHITE RESPONDENTS
Generally speaking, would you
say most people can be trusted
or that you can’t be too careful?Trust has improved slightly in our community, with 18% of people thinking others are trustworthy compared to last year’s 12%. However, 41% of respondents defaulted to not trusting others, up from 24% two years ago.
subgroups who saypeople can be trusted
NEIGHBORHOOD PERCEPTIONSDespite having low trust in others, people view their neighborhoods favorably, with 63% agreeing or strongly agreeing that people are willing to help their neighbors.
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY
When asked, "In thinking about your current financial situation, how difficult is it for you to pay your bills each month?" 46% indicated they struggle to pay monthly expenses.
In positive news, the percentage of people who find it “very difficult” has dropped significantly since our 2024 survey, while the rate of people who find it “not at all difficult” nearly doubled since last year.
EBR RESIDENTs ARE FINANCIALLY INSECURE
Those most likely to struggle financially are:
The percentage of respondents who indicated they are somewhat or very confident in their ability to cover a large expense increased for the second straight year.
While a significant portion of parish residents do not feel prepared to weather unexpected expenses, this group is 17% smaller than it was last year.
food securityThese disparities are more noticeable for Black respondents, where 4 in 10 indicated they are often or sometimes worried about having enough food or being able to afford healthy food.
In contrast, only 9% of white respondents answered yes to any of the three food security questions shown in the chart to the right. This means Black residents are impacted by food insecurity about 2.5x more often than white residents.
which of the following scenarios were truefor your household in
the past 12 months?
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
excellent education
pre-k enrollmentPre-K enrollment in Baton Rouge has continued to grow, even as enrollment statewide decreased. However, enrollment has seen notable fluctuations across the years while national and statewide enrollment has remained relatively consistent. The result is an overall downward trend in Pre-K enrollment in the parish.
school enrollment
*Only four schools are currently in the state’s Recovery School District. Three of them are in East BatonRouge Parish: Dalton Elementary School, Lanier Elementary School and Prescott K-8 Academy.
GRADUATION RATESSchools in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System have a 40-point spread in high school graduation rates, with some schools only graduating 56.9% of their seniors, and others graduating more than 95%.
Graduation rates in Baker improved slightly compared to last year but still show the poorest outcomes when compared to all other public districts in the Parish.
Zachary schools continue their strong graduation rates, exceeding 95% graduation for the 5th year in a row.
The high school dropout rate has improved significantly since our last report, dropping by 1.7 percentage points.. However, attendance still poses a challenge, with 55% of students in public schools being classified as truant in the 2023-24 school year; the statewide average is 42%.
DROPOUT RATEThe percentage of adults with high school diplomas have remained relatively steady while secondary degree attainment has declined.
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT LEAP PASSAGE RATEStudents in the parish held steady or improved LEAP test scores this year. Students must achieve a “Mastery” or “Advanced” level score to pass. Eighth graders showed notable growth in Math and Science when compared to last year.
STRONG & SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS
In your own personal experience, would you say that the neighborhood where you live is getting better or getting worse as a place to live?
neighborhood safety
Any additional percentage needed to sum to 100 is "Don't Know/Refused"
Do you feel safe walking alone in your neighborhood at night?
policy relationsAttitudes towards law enforcement remain positive, with a majority of respondents ranking law enforcement as trusted, fair, and good at their jobs.
crimeEast Baton Rouge saw a 17% increase in homicides between 2023 and 2024. Though this number rests below the peaks seen in 2020-2022, the parish average remains well above the national average of 6.81 murders per 100,000 residents. In Baton Rouge, that would be the same as 31 homicides for a parish our size.
NUMBER OF MURDERS
number of offensesSome law enforcement agencies in the parish changed the system they use to report crimes during 2024. At the time of publication, City-Parish representatives were working to ensure this is accurately reflected in OpenDataBR, a source we often reference for CityStats. Because of this change, we are unable to dive into the types of crimes investigated by BRPD and EBRSO during the 2024 calendar year.
traffic East Baton Rouge Parish was the second most dangerous parish in the state where vehicle crashes are concerned. More than 11% of all crashes in Louisiana that resulted in death or injuries occurred in EBR. We were only outpaced by Orleans Parish, which accounted for 14.5% of all crashes resulting in injury or fatalities statewide.
In positive news, the number of reported traffic accidents fell nearly 10% in 2024. While the overall number of fatalities decreased year-over-year, nearly one third of all fatalities were linked to alcohol or substance use.
HEALTHY FAMILIES
OVERDOSES East Baton Rouge Parish saw a big drop in the number of drug overdoses in the parish. Despite the impressive 35% decrease in overdose deaths, 188 lives were still tragically lost to addiction.
The Center for Disease Control most recently shared data about smoking prevalence for the 2022 calendar year. Smoking rates have decreased by nearly 10% in the parish year over year, consistent with decreases seen nationally and statewide.
SMOKING RATE
As cigarette usage drops, we’ll start keeping an eye on e-cigarette use. At the time of the CDC’s last available report, 6% of all Americans used a vape or e-cigarette to consume tobacco.
CHRONIC ILLNESSIn general, parish residents indicated higher-than average diagnosis rates for commonly tracked chronic illnesses.
A report released summer of 2025 by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation and Common Good Labs explores the causes. Read the full report here.
Which drivers of longevity keep
Baton Rougians from living long, healthy lives?
chronic illness profilesThis year’s chronic illness profiles shifted notably by gender and race from 2024. Most conditions affected adults 65+ at 3 to 10 times higher rates than other groups—except asthma, which showed no such age gap.
INFANT MORTALITYThe infant mortality rate in East Baton Rouge has dipped below 9 per 1,000 live births for the first time since we began tracking this. However, East Baton Rouge still has the highest rate of reported infant mortality in the state, accounting for 12.8% of statewide infant deaths in 2023.
teen birth rateTeen birth rates are also low, with teenaged moms only accounting for 2% of all births in the parish in 2024.
health insurancePassage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act could have serious implications for Baton Rougians insured through Medicaid. In total, 91% of survey respondents covered by Medicaid indicated they are very or somewhat worried about losing their coverage.
Note: Because people can have multiple types of insurance coverage, some respondents are included in the count for multiple insurance types.
resilient communities
ebr risk indexEast Baton Rouge’s FEMA-assigned Community National Risk Index resilience score is 60.1.
EBR communities have a relatively high ability – about 60% higher than the rest of the nation – to prepare for anticipated natural hazards, adapt to changing conditions, and withstand and recover rapidly from disruptions when compared to the rest of the U.S.
While we are resilient, EBR’s susceptibility score is 80.3, meaning we are more vulnerable to the adverse impacts of natural hazards than the rest of the U.S.
climate changeHalf of parish residents indicated they are extremely or somewhat worried about the effects of climate change on future generations. Respondents elsewhere are more worried, with 63% of U.S. respondents and 76% of global citizens indicating they are extremely or somewhat worried.
Thinking about extreme weather events, was your experience in the past 12 months worse than usual, about the same, or better than usual?
extreme weather eventsResidents were almost half as likely to say that the weather events they experienced were worse than usual when compared to the rest of the world. In a community that has normalized hurricanes and other extreme weather, the bar for “usual” is likely at a different rung of the ladder than it may be for other countries and regions experiencing new, tragic weather events for the first time in modern history.
INDICATORs INDEX
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East: The area of Baton Rouge containing the following zip codes: 70815, 70816, 70817, and 70819.
North: The area of Baton Rouge containing the following zip codes: 70801, 70802, 70805, 70806, 70807, 70811, 70812, 70813, and 70814.
Outlying: The area of Baton Rouge containing the following zip codes: 70714, 70722, 70739, 70748, 70770, 70777, 70791, and 70818.
South: The area of Baton Rouge containing the following zip codes: 70803, 70808, 70809, 70810, 70820, and 70836.
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Languages (U.S. Census Bureau) – Primary language spoken in a household.
Median Household Income (U.S. Census Bureau) – Median is the amount that divides the income distribution into two equal groups, half with income above and half with income below. Family is a household related through blood, marriage or adoption.
Other People of Color – Used to describe people who identified as two or more races or those who did not identify as the race options administered through the U.S. Census.
Poverty Rates (U.S. Census Bureau) – Percent of people living in poverty under the federal definition. Federal thresholds for poverty include age of family members and size of family.
Unemployment (Louisiana Workforce Commission) – Number of people employed in East Baton Rouge Parish and the unemployment rate in EBR.
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Acres of Public Parks (BREC) – Total acreage of parks, miles of trails, and acres of conservation land maintained by BREC.
Children’s Future Residency (Survey) – Where parents want their children to live as adults and what could make them stay in EBR.
Commute (U.S. Census Bureau) – Average one-way commute to work, times of departure, and means of travel.
Computer Use (EBR Parish Library) – Number of logins to the library system’s public terminals.
Digital Circulation (EBR Parish Library) – Downloaded books, audiobooks, magazines and other digital media.
Drawing Newcomers (Survey) – What Baton Rouge could improve to draw people to live in the parish.
Earnings (Survey) – Respondents’ answers to whether they think children can earn more than their parents in EBR.
Friendship (Survey) – How many close friends respondents said they had.
Housing Units (U.S. Census Bureau) – The types of housing available in Baton Rouge to rent or own. Single-family homes are “1-unit” structures while multiplex homes and apartments are “2-ormore-unit” structures.
Library circulation (EBR Parish Library) – Total circulation of physical books, digital media, online books and audio.
Miles of Public Trails (BREC) – Trails are off-road and the amount does not include on-road bike paths.
Passengers (BTR Metro Airport) – Total number of people arriving to or leaving from Baton Rouge via airplane.
Why EBR (Survey) – What is the best part of living in East Baton Rouge.
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Direction of Parish (Survey): Is the parish going in the right or wrong direction?
Influence (Survey) – How much influence respondents feel they have over local, state, and federal elected officials.
Interpersonal Trust (Survey) – Whether people trust others, proceed with caution, or are distrustful.
Pace of Progress (Survey) – Respondents say whether the pace of progress is “too slow,” “about right,” or “too fast.”
Party Affiliation (Louisiana Secretary of State) – The democratic, republican, or independent party affiliation of registered voters in East Baton Rouge Parish.
Trusted Entities (Survey) – Which institutions are trusted to make EBR a better place to live.
Volunteering (Survey) – number of residents participating in common forms of community volunteering.
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Financial Insecurity (Survey) – Confidence in ability to pay expected and unexpected expenses.
Food Security (Survey) – Whether people felt they could afford and access food regularly and in a balanced, healthy way.
Future Earnings (Survey) – Whether or not someone expects to earn more in a few years.
Retirement Tools (Survey) – Whether people are preparing for retirement through common financial tools like a 401(k).
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Graduates (Louisiana Department of Education): Percent of residents with high school degrees and college degrees.
High School Graduation Rate (Louisiana Department of Education): Percent of students who complete high school in four years.
LEAP tests (Louisiana Department of Education): Percentage of EBRPSS students in 4th and 8th grades achieving a rating of “basic” or above on state standardized testing
Pre-K Enrollment (US Census Bureau): Percent of 3 and 4:year:olds enrolled in pre:k programs.
Recovery School District (Louisiana Department of Education): Schools under management of the State Department of Education with the goal of reversing chronically low performance.
School Enrollment (Louisiana Department of Education): Total enrollment in public school systems and all parish private schools.
Truancy (Louisiana Department of Education) – Five or more unexcused absences in a school year.
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Crimes (EBRSO, BRPD, City of BR): Number of violent and nonviolent crimes in the calendar year.
Neighborhood Improvement (Survey): Whether people think their neighborhood is getting better, getting worse, or staying stagnant.
Police Relations (Survey): Perceptions of police efficacy, fairness, and accountability.
Total Homicides (EBR Coroner): Number of murders in a calendar year. “Homicide” is a medicolegal term that includes all human deaths caused by the actions of another human; some of those deaths may be subject to criminal prosecution, others are not.
Traffic Accidents (EBRSO, BRPD, City of BR): Number of automobile accidents in the calendar year.
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Chronic Disease (CDC, Survey) – Health condition that lasts 1 year or more and require ongoing medical attention and/or limit activities of daily living.
Infant Mortality Rate (Louisiana Department of Health) – Number of deaths per thousand infants under 12 months of age.
Medicaid – A government program that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources in the United States.
One Big Beautiful Bill Act – A U.S. federal statute passed by the 119th United States Congress containing tax and spending policies that directly impact access to certain federal safety nets, such as Medicaid.
Smoking (Louisiana Department of Health): Prevalence of smoking
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Climate Change (Survey, People’s Climate) – Long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns.
Extreme Weather Events (Survey, People’s Climate) – Droughts, flooding, hurricanes/storms, extreme heat or cold, or other natural weather events.
National Risk Index (FEMA) – A risk assessment resource administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assess parish-level risk for natural disasters and recovery from them.
Percentages: In some instances, percentages of all responses add up to a value that does not equal 100%. This is due to mathematical rounding rules for whole numbers.