City safety & data profile

SparksNV

Q: What is the population of Sparks, NV?

Sparks, NV has a population of 96,094 people, located in Washoe County, Nevada.

Q: What is the median household income in Sparks?

The median household income in Sparks, NV is $89,056 per year, per the U.S. Census ACS. The poverty rate is 8.5%.

Q: What is the median home value in Sparks?

The median home value in Sparks, NV is $483,800. Median rent is $1,716/month.

Q: What are the top health concerns in Sparks?

The top health indicators in Sparks include Short Sleep Duration (38.6%), High Blood Pressure (28.6%), Obesity (28.6%). Data from CDC PLACES.

Q: How many hospitals are in Sparks?

Sparks has 2 hospitals with an average rating of 3/5 stars. 1 have emergency departments.

Q: What is the median age in Sparks?

The median age in Sparks, NV is 37.2 years. 27.6% of residents have a bachelor's degree or higher.

Q: What is the climate like in Sparks?

Sparks has an average annual temperature of 53.5°F and 8.4" of annual precipitation.

Q: What is the cost of living in Sparks?

The regional price parity for Sparks is 101.014, meaning prices are 1.0% above the national average.

Q: What is the flood claim history for Sparks?

Washoe County, Nevada has recorded 146 NFIP flood insurance claims since 2016, totaling $3.2M in payouts. This is county-level data: FEMA does not attribute individual claims to a specific city.

Sparks, NV is a 96K-resident city in Washoe County with a median household income of $89,056.

Washoe County, Nevada. Federal health, economic, and safety indicators for Sparks, drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, CDC PLACES, and CMS Hospital Compare. Sparks has a population larger than 92% of the 4,640 U.S. cities Areazine tracks, a median home value of $483,800, and 2 hospitals serving the surrounding area.

Compiled by Areazine

Data updated 2026-09-16

96K
Population (place): Top 8%
By size: $89,056
Median income (place): $483,800
Median home (place): 8.5%
Poverty rate (place)

My saved cities

The read on Sparks

Sparks posts a median household income higher than 59% of U.S. cities Areazine tracks, where 2 hospitals serve the Sparks area.

Top 41%
by median income, US cities: 2
hospitals in & near Sparks

Composite score · Sparks, NV

49/100

4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2024

A transparent index Areazine derives from Census ACS medians (income, poverty, bachelor's share) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when published, not an official Census Bureau or FBI rating. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability rating, not a recommendation to move to or avoid any place. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.

Poverty rate C+

8.5%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis. ACS 5-Year Estimates.

Household income C

$89,056

Median household income vs cities tracked on Areazine; ACS 5-Year Estimates.

Bachelor's+ share F

27.6%

Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS 5-Year Estimates.

Violent crime F

355 /100k

FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents. State-level rate (per-city UCR reporting is incomplete/voluntary): every city in the state shares this value; lower is stronger on this axis.

Compare against every tracked city: Healthiest Cities in America (health outcomes only) · Community Wellbeing Cities (this page's blended composite).

Where Sparks income ranks nationally

Median household income vs. every place Areazine profiles (place-level ACS)

$89,056 Top 41% higher than 59% of 3,889 places Areazine profiles

Each bar is a $20,000-wide band; taller bars hold more places Areazine profiles. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (place-level) · 2024 ACS 5-year

Las Vegas

641,903
Henderson

285,667
Reno

264,165
North Las Vegas

234,807
Paradise

223,167
Sunrise Manor

189,372
Spring Valley

178,395
Enterprise

108,481
Sparks

96,094
Carson City

58,639

What this shows By headcount, Las Vegas ranks #1 here -- income honors go to Spanish Springs.

Spanish Springs

$127,658
Summerlin South

$117,035
Spring Creek

$105,154
Enterprise

$98,462
Henderson

$90,138
Fernley

$89,517
Sparks

$89,056
Gardnerville Ranchos

$87,785
Reno

$80,760
North Las Vegas

$79,542

What this shows Spanish Springs posts the highest place-level median income in NV; Las Vegas is largest by headcount.

The quick read

Reading Sparks, NV beyond the headline numbers

Sparks sits inside Washoe County, Nevada, at roughly 39.53°N, -119.75°W. Population 96,094, $89,056 median household income. Median home value $483,800, median rent $1,716. Poverty rate 8.5%, read against that income figure since two cities on the same median can differ underneath it.

2 hospitals in/around Sparks, 3/5 avg rating, 1 with an ER. Climate: 53.5°F annual average, 8.4" precipitation.

Among the CDC measures on this page, binge drinking departs furthest from its peer median: 18.7% in Sparks, the highest-prevalence quarter of the 3,759 cities reporting that measure.

The median home in Sparks costs around 5.4 times what a median household earns in a year -- the most expensive quarter of reporting cities, and far enough ahead of local pay that ownership is largely closed to median earners.

Median rent in Sparks, NV runs $1,716/month, above the midpoint for reporting cities -- worth weighing against the income figures on this page.

At 8.5%, poverty in Sparks, NV runs below the midpoint of reporting cities -- enough to matter locally, not enough to dominate the city's profile.

27.6% of Sparks adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, below the midpoint of reporting cities.

Remote work covers 11.1% of Sparks workers, under the midpoint for reporting cities.

Unemployment in Sparks sits at 5.2%, above the midpoint of reporting cities.

Sources: U.S. Census ACS, CDC PLACES, CMS Hospital Compare, plus live alerts for Sparks from FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC. Economic comparison bars use the unweighted average across tracked Census places with a reported value, not a household-weighted national median.

A Decade of Change 2013–2024

County-level trend (Washoe County): Sparks's own historical series isn't separately published by the Census Bureau, so these year-over-year figures track the surrounding county, not the city alone.

20132024

Population

497K+17%

Median Income

$88,096+66%

Median Home Value

$539,900+166%

Poverty Rate

10.7%-29%

Unemployment

5.1%-54%

Economic Snapshot

Sparks's poverty rate of 8.5% runs 31% below the tracked-city average, the most notable of the economic figures Areazine tracks here. Median rent runs 12% above average too, at $1,716/mo.

Economics indicators for Sparks, NV
Indicator	Value
Median Rent	$1,716/mo
Poverty Rate	8.5% -31% vs avg
Unemployment	5.2%
Bachelor's Degree+	27.6%
Work From Home	11.1%
Public Transit	2%

Population Snapshot

White 57.9%

African American 2.4%

Asian 6.4%

Two or More Ethnicities 0.9%

Health Snapshot 15 measures

Health Indicators

Short Sleep Duration

38.6%

High Blood Pressure

28.6%

Obesity

28.6%

Physical Inactivity

22.4%

Binge Drinking

18.7%

Frequent Mental Distress

18.1%

Frequent Physical Distress

14.2%

Lack of Health Insurance

13.8%

Current Smoking

12.9%

Current Asthma

10.5%

Preventive Care

Dental Visit 60.3%

Annual Checkup 73.7%

Other Measures

Diabetes

9.8%

Coronary Heart Disease

5.6%

Stroke

3.1%

Local Hospitals 2 total

CMS Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating (1-5): a composite score across dozens of reported measures, not a single outcome guarantee for any patient. It isn't adjusted for patient case mix and isn't directly comparable across hospital types, a critical-access facility and a large teaching hospital aren't rated on the same measure set.

Rating Distribution

★★★★★

★★★★

★★★

★★

★

Average Rating

3/5

Total Hospitals

With ER

NORTHERN NEVADA MEDICAL CENTER

SPARKS · Acute Care Hospitals · ER

★★★☆☆

Climate

NOAA 1991-2020 Normals

Avg Temperature

54°F

Annual Rainfall

8.4"

Hot Months (>80°F)

Cold Months (<40°F)

48°

25°

Jan

1.3"

53°

27°

Feb

1.0"

60°

32°

Mar

0.9"

65°

36°

Apr

0.5"

74°

43°

May

0.7"

84°

49°

Jun

0.4"

92°

55°

Jul

0.4"

91°

53°

Aug

0.3"

84°

46°

Sep

0.2"

72°

37°

Oct

0.9"

57°

29°

Nov

0.7"

47°

25°

Dec

1.1"

Cost of Living

BEA 2024

101.0 Regional Price Parity

1.0% above national average

US avg

101.0

Metro area: Reno, NV (MSA)

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities via FRED. RPP of 100 = national average.

NFIP Flood Claim History

FEMA NFIP, county-level

146

Claims filed

$3.2M

Total paid out

Most common flood zone

146 flood insurance claims have been filed in Washoe County since 2016, with $3.2M paid out by the NFIP.

1 claims trace back to Tropical Storm Hilary, the biggest named event in the county's flood-claim history.

Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims, via OpenFEMA. County-level data: individual claims are not attributed to a specific city or address by FEMA.

What alerts and safety updates affect Sparks?

No area-tagged alerts are on record for Sparks right now. New federal and counterpart-agency notices still land in the site feed as agencies publish them.

City alert dispatch desk

Sheet NV-SPARKS · Sparks

Sparks: no area-tagged alerts on record. State hubs carry the live CAP stream.

FEED-QUIET No tagged alerts
LEAD-NONE Feed idle
DESK-IDLE Awaiting feed

Counts reflect published articles tagged to Sparks; untagged NOAA county warnings may still appear in the site feed. Browse Nevada state hubs · Methodology

Common Questions 9

What is the population of Sparks, NV? ▼

Sparks, NV has a population of 96,094 people, located in Washoe County, Nevada.

What is the median household income in Sparks? ▼

The median household income in Sparks, NV is $89,056 per year, per the U.S. Census ACS. The poverty rate is 8.5%.

What is the median home value in Sparks? ▼

The median home value in Sparks, NV is $483,800. Median rent is $1,716/month.

What are the top health concerns in Sparks? ▼

The top health indicators in Sparks include Short Sleep Duration (38.6%), High Blood Pressure (28.6%), Obesity (28.6%). Data from CDC PLACES.

How many hospitals are in Sparks? ▼

Sparks has 2 hospitals with an average rating of 3/5 stars. 1 have emergency departments.

What is the median age in Sparks? ▼

The median age in Sparks, NV is 37.2 years. 27.6% of residents have a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the climate like in Sparks? ▼

Sparks has an average annual temperature of 53.5°F and 8.4" of annual precipitation.

What is the cost of living in Sparks? ▼

The regional price parity for Sparks is 101.014, meaning prices are 1.0% above the national average.

What is the flood claim history for Sparks? ▼

Washoe County, Nevada has recorded 146 NFIP flood insurance claims since 2016, totaling $3.2M in payouts. This is county-level data: FEMA does not attribute individual claims to a specific city.

Comparable cities by poverty or income, nationwide 8

Two ACS-derived peer sets for Sparks, both outside Nevada so the neighborhoods are not the geographic nearby list below.

Similar poverty rate

Nearest place-level ACS poverty rates outside NV (8.5% here).

Miramar, FL 8.5% Rochester, MN 8.5% Sandy Springs, GA 8.5% Hillsboro, OR 8.5%

Similar median income

Nearest place-level ACS median household incomes outside NV ($89,056 here).

Concord, MO $89,038 Newport East, RI $89,028 Destin, FL $89,011 Spring, TX $88,997

Compare Sparks with another city

Pick a second U.S. city to open a side-by-side profile on population, income, health, and hospitals, the same federal datasets as this page.

Quick picks:

Nearby Places 8

Reno, NV 264K Sun Valley, NV 19K Spanish Springs, NV 15K Carson City, NV 59K Truckee, CA 16K Fernley, NV 19K South Lake Tahoe, CA 22K Gardnerville Ranchos, NV 11K

All cities in Nevada → Compare Sparks vs Reno → All comparisons → Browse all cities

Using Sparks's profile

Use this as a starting research checklist, not a verdict on whether to live here.

Check live recalls, weather and hazard alerts scoped to the Sparks area before relying on national headlines. Check your area
Read the poverty rate alongside the income figure, two places with the same median can have very different realities.
Compare Sparks against Nevada peers on any ranking lens. Explore Nevada

U.S. Census ACS supplies the place-level population and economics figures (income, home value, poverty, education); CDC PLACES supplies health; hospital counts reflect nearby facilities. County-level trends carry their own label.

Data Sources

All data on this page comes from official U.S. government sources. Population and economic data from the Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates, place geography). Health data from the CDC PLACES program (2023). Hospital ratings from CMS Hospital Compare (2024). Climate data from NOAA. Education data from NCES. Cost of living from Bureau of Economic Analysis. Crime statistics, where referenced on Areazine, originate from the FBI Crime Data Explorer. Housing market figures referenced on Areazine come from HUD Fair Market Rents. Census economics and population are at place geography; some health and hospital indicators are reported at the county level (Washoe County) where that is the smallest published unit.

Every figure on Areazine is published directly from official U.S. government sources, no number is typed in by an editor. City demographic and health figures are compiled directly from U.S. Census (place-level ACS), CDC, and CMS releases, updated quarterly within 30 days of upstream release. County-level trends are labeled when shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-09-16.