2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Bellingham, WA vs Ocean Shores, WA

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Highlights
- Household income in Ocean Shores, is 12% less than it is in Bellingham and is 32% below the National Average.
- Bellingham unemployment rate is 6.2%.
- Ocean Shores unemployment rate is 8.8%.
 Bellingham, WAOcean Shores, WAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock8.8%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock1.0%1.6%
 Future Job Growth41.7%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes8.7%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock0.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$36,147  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$52,255$69,021
 Family Median Income$92,650  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Bellingham, WAOcean Shores, WAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock7.4%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K4.3%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock11.2%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K9.7%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock14.8%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K8.2%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock17.6%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K12.6%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock6.4%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K7.1%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock0.5%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Bellingham, WAOcean Shores, WAUnited States
 Management, business, finance14.5%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock1.9%6.5%
 Community, social services2.7%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock2.0%1.2%
 Education, library8.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock3.3%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology6.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock8.2%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.8%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock13.9%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.3%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.1%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support19.2%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.0%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair5.7%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock8.5%13.1%
Reviews for Bellingham    58 Reviews

Over 3 years ago

I've lived in so many cities in 5 west coast states and have come to a conclusion that Bellingham is the greatest city to live, work, play and raise a family. After  More

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Over 4 years ago

From what I’ve seen and heard, the very liberal political/ethical beliefs of Bellingham residents, as well as the grey rainy weather, are the main things a few people  More

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If you’re like many Americans and caught up in right vs left you won’t like the far left here in Bellingham wa. If you put politics away and you enjoy skiing,  More

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Reviews for Ocean Shores    7 Reviews

Over 5 years ago

We are going on our 3rd year in OS. We love the small town feel, the low stress and feeling of safety. This is all for the winter months mind you. In the summer, it is a  More

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Over 10 years ago

Wonderful beach town.... we're going into our second year and I disagree with the grocery store comments and the weather. Yes, it rains or drizzles on occasion, but the  More

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We invested in Ocean Shores as a second home to spend our weekends after the work week stress. I'm also a property manager that works in Washington, Oregon and  More

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