Soldotna, Alaska

Population

Growing. Up 5.8% since 2020.

4,615

people, the 13th-largest of Alaska's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Alaska's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

83.1%

of 3,524 jobs located in Soldotna are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2016. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 41% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,020

a month. Alaska's median is $1,419.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $811 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Kenai Peninsula Borough.

• $575 Tract 12
• $1,386 Tract 4

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent sits inside what local wages can carry.

$794–$1,191

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,020 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2016 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

61% of the housing here was built before 2000.

• 196 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 23% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 61% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.2–1.7% to the 2,046 homes here.

5–35

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2016 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 13% less than Alaska's.

$306,000

median home value in Soldotna.

• $306,000 Soldotna
• $352,900 Alaska
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year