Opelousas is a medium-sized city located in the state of Louisiana. With a population of 15,390 people and 12 associated neighborhoods, Opelousas is the 28th largest community in Louisiana.Unlike some cities, Opelousas isn’t mainly white- or blue-collar. Instead, the most prevalent occupations for people in Opelousas are a mix of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Opelousas is a city of service providers, sales and office workers, and professionals. There are especially a lot of people living in Opelousas who work in sales jobs (12.56%), healthcare suport services (10.85%), and food service (9.44%). The percentage of people in Opelousas with college degrees is quite a bit lower than the national average for cities and towns of 21.84%: just 10.88% of people over 25 have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree. The per capita income in Opelousas in 2022 was $19,584, which is low income relative to Louisiana and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $78,336 for a family of four. However, Opelousas contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Opelousas also has one of the higher rates of people living in poverty in the nation, with 33.99% of its population below the federal poverty line.Opelousas is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Opelousas home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Opelousas residents report their race to be Black or African-American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Opelousas include French, French Canadian, Italian, English, and German. The most common language spoken in Opelousas is English. Other important languages spoken here include French and Spanish.
