Cities › IN
Indianapolis
Mayor Joe Hogsett · Democratic · in office since Jan. 1, 2016
The Executive Summary
Mayor Joe Hogsett (D) has led Indianapolis since Jan. 2016; on economic outcomes — the only thing this site scores for mayors — Indianapolis ranks No. 11 of 21 big cities. On Hogsett's watch, median household income rose $60,436 → $66,900 across 2017–2024; unemployment rose 3.6% → 3.7% across 2017–2025. Crime, housing and schools are not in this score, and outcomes are shared with the council and the economy — association, not causation.
| Unemployment 3.7% (2025) | +0.40σ · -0.44%/yr vs peers -0.33%/yr · 2017–2025 (9 pts) |
| Median household income $66,900 (2024 · constant 2024 $) | −0.09σ · +2.07%/yr vs peers +1.15%/yr · 2017–2024 (7 pts) |
| Poverty rate 15.8% (2024) | −0.13σ · -1.29%/yr vs peers -1.44%/yr · 2017–2024 (7 pts) |
| Government form | Strong mayor |
Indianapolis is a strong-mayor city, so day-to-day administration answers to Joe Hogsett. The score is Indianapolis's economic trend during their tenure, measured against the other 49 largest cities over the same years.
Sources: unemployment — BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics · median household income — Census ACS 1-year, CPI-U deflated · poverty rate — Census ACS 1-year (B17001). Unemployment runs through 2025; income and poverty through 2024. The 2025 unemployment point is an eleven-month average — October 2025 was never collected during the federal shutdown — and it is included and flagged here under the same rule the state pages apply to the same statistic (one statistic, one rulebook, as of v2.6; through v2.5 city pages excluded it instead, and the changelog says so).
Scored on economic outcomes only — unemployment, real median income and poverty. Crime, housing and health are not yet included, so this is a narrower measure than a governor’s. Two denominators. The rank is out of 21 — the mayors with enough scored years to rank. 21 of 50 cities are scored, 0 of those are early reads left unranked, and 29 mayors are not yet scorable. Each σ is measured against all 49 other cities. No 2020 point exists for income or poverty — the Census Bureau never released standard ACS 1-year estimates for 2020, and the gap is not interpolated. That is why a window spanning 2020 carries one point fewer than its span. Consolidated city-county. Joe Hogsett heads a city-county government consolidated with Marion County, which the Census reports as an incorporated place — so the population and the economic statistics on this page describe the county balance: the consolidated area minus the separately incorporated municipalities inside it. Government form follows standard reference classifications and was not verified city by city. Methodology
The Rundown
No. 11 of 21 big-city mayors — on economics, and only economics.
Unemployment. Better than the typical big city. 3.6% → 3.7% across 2017–2025.
Median household income. Worse than the typical big city. $60,436 → $66,900 across 2017–2024.
Poverty rate. About the middle of the pack. 17.5% → 15.8% across 2017–2024.
How this is scored: 60% is where Indianapolis stands against the other 49 largest cities, 40% is which way it moved on Mayor Hogsett's watch — the same rule governors get. It covers 3 economic outcomes only: crime, housing and schools are not in this grade, so it is narrower than a governor's. Indianapolis is a strong-mayor city, so day-to-day administration answers to the mayor.
Indianapolis sits in IN, whose governor Mike Braun does not yet hold a ranked statewide record, so there is no state standing to quote beside this page. State outcomes would not be the mayor’s grade in any case — a city is not a state.