2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Tuscaloosa, AL vs Ruston, LA

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Highlights
- Household income in Ruston, is 23% less than it is in Tuscaloosa and is 100% below the National Average.
- Tuscaloosa unemployment rate is 4.4%.
- Ruston unemployment rate is 4.7%.
 Tuscaloosa, ALRuston, LAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock4.7%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock1.5%1.6%
 Future Job Growth31.2%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes9.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock6.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$27,789  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$34,554$69,021
 Family Median Income$69,436  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Tuscaloosa, ALRuston, LAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock22.0%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K6.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock12.0%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K9.9%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock11.1%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K6.4%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock4.2%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K8.7%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock7.0%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K4.5%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock2.5%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Tuscaloosa, ALRuston, LAUnited States
 Management, business, finance13.1%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock4.4%6.5%
 Community, social services1.8%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock0.2%1.2%
 Education, library9.2%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock2.5%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology5.7%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock4.4%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.8%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock13.1%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.8%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.9%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support22.0%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock1.0%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair5.2%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock14.0%13.1%
Reviews for Tuscaloosa    9 Reviews

This is the deal with Tuscaloosa. If you have strong family support that will keep you on track, you may be okay. Alabama has too many broken, uneducated, poor  More

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We've lived in Tuscaloosa for several years now. It's a diverse, friendly college town -- home of the University of Alabama and it's lovely campus -- that is relatively  More

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Tuscaloosa used to have some character. We had a decent live music scene, an up and coming artist community, affordable housing, and there were even several places for  More

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Reviews for Ruston    2 Reviews

Over 4 years ago

Back stabbing little town you want get anywhere with out knowing people or have  More

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Very difficult to find a job here if you’re not hired by the university. When my husband got a job with the university, I didn’t think it would be so difficult for me  More

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