Pullman, Washington

What Pullman is made of: the communities whose institutions are here, the sectors its 1,254 businesses sit in, the franchises already on the ground, and the services a newcomer could start.

1,254 businesses on file · 110 trades · 33 sectors · census population 31,939 · registry population 32,901 · built from geonet.spokane on 2026-10-07

The two disagree: the registry says 32,901 and the 2021 census counted 31,939 for the municipality. The registry figure is often a metropolitan population. Both are shown; neither is corrected into the other.

Businesses1,254
100% carry coordinates
Specialised in12
trades above the national pattern
Best suited toStudents and young adults
on the census signals below
Franchise brands29
already operating here

Visiting rather than moving? The free guidebook for Pullman → — the free guidebook for this region: why go, what to see, what is open when it rains.

1

The local economy

What the business base is made of, what it is specialised in against the national pattern, and what that mix implies. This is the part a development office would read first.

Composition, not health. geonet records what trades exist and where; it does not record formation, closure, employment or revenue, so none of those appear here. What makes this economics rather than a directory is the NAICS coding: it lets the local mix be read against the BLS survival curves and against the 323 industry groups this research has screened.

The two biggest markets here

Every industry group on this page links through to its NAICS page, and to the screened market report where this research has one — that is what the trait-to-NAICS coding buys.

Business density39.3
businesses per 1,000 residents, against the 2021 census count of 31,939
Breadth of the base302
broad — 83 industry groups, top three 19%
Survival the mix implies56.6%
at five years, against 51.4% for all private establishments
Coded to NAICS53.7%
of which 72.1% unambiguous

What this city is specialised in

Location quotient is this city's share of a trade divided by the same share across 10 US metro tables. Above 1.25 is the conventional threshold for a local specialisation.

The base against the entry screen

Businesses by the entry signal of the industry group they sit in, from the /markets screen. A large "structure decides" share means most local trades are ones where being better than the incumbent does not by itself win. A trade is matched to the screened record at whatever level the research wrote it — the same code, a broader one, or a narrower one. Where a group holds several screened sub-markets the count is shown, because no single one of them speaks for the whole group.

Enter
28.2%
190 businesses
Caution
47%
316 businesses
Structure decides
24.8%
167 businesses
Not screened
0%
0 businesses

How to read the survival figure

Each sector's five-year establishment survival rate, weighted by how many of this city's businesses sit in that sector. It is a property of the MIX, not of these businesses — it says what survival this composition would imply at US private-sector rates, because no Canadian equivalent series exists.

Weighted over 95.7% of the coded base — public administration carries no curve. Source: Business Employment Dynamics — Table 7, Survival of private sector establishments by opening year, US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And what it does not measure

A "mixed" trait is one that genuinely spans codes — "computers" covers systems design, repair and supply. The clear share is how much of this reading rests on unambiguous coding. Business density also reflects how completely the directory covers a place, not only how many businesses are in it — so it compares poorly between a city the register knows well and one it does not.

2

Who lives here, and who the city is for

The census: the only figures on this page that count people rather than businesses, and the three cohort readings they make possible.

The register says what trades exist. The census says who lives here — and it is the only thing on this page that counts people. Figures are American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates for Pullman city, Washington, the incorporated place, which is the city proper, and every comparison is against the United States as a whole, from the same ACS tables.

Detailed language is not published for American places. B16001, the table with individual languages, has no place-level rows; C16001 is what exists, and it names six languages and groups the rest into families. A Canadian city on this site names about forty.

Population31,939
census 2021
Median age22.8
against 38.7 nationally
Immigrants10.8%
against 13.9% nationally
Median rent$1,010
against $1,348 nationally

Who the city is for

Three readings, each built from real numbers against real benchmarks. This is not an index. Every signal is shown with its own value, its benchmark and which way it points, and the band simply counts how many point the same way — so a reader who disagrees with one signal can drop it and still use the rest.

Seniors

thin

Is this a place to grow old, and is the care here?

Residents 65 and over 6.5% ▼16.8%
Residents 85 and overthe group that needs care rather than the group that is merely retired 0.8% ▼1.9%
Median age 22.8 years ▼38.7 years
Poverty ratethe US poverty threshold — a different definition from the Canadian pages, and not comparable to them 32.1% ▼12.4%
Medical clinics per 1,000 residentsfrom the business register 0.16 –
Pharmacies per 1,000 residentsfrom the business register 0.25 –
Median rent 1010 $/mo ▲1348 $/mo

A high share of over-65s says other people made this choice; it does not say the care exists. The register has no category for a hospital at all, so distance to an emergency department is still missing.

Students and young adults

strong

Is there a reason to be here between 19 and 25, and can they afford it?

Residents 20 to 24 32.4% ▲6.5%
Residents 15 to 19the cohort arriving next 15.3% ▲6.5%
Renter householdsa rental market is what makes a place possible to move to 68.7% ▲35%
Median rent 1010 $/mo ▲1348 $/mo
Unemployment rate 7.5% ▼5.2%
Degree holders in the adult population 62.5% ▲35%
Drinking places and recreationfrom the register 7 –

Post-secondary institutions in the city are listed further down this page; where there are none, a high 20-to-24 share usually means work rather than study.

Newcomers and other-language speakers

moderate

Is there already a community here, and has anyone built anything for it?

Foreign-born residents 10.8% ▼13.9%
Arrived 2010 or laterthe band the ACS publishes; the Canadian pages use 2016 to 2021, so the two are not comparable 50.2% ▲29.4%
Speak a language other than English at home 14% –
Language groups above the reporting floor 10 –
Median household income 45097 $ ▼78538 $

The American census does not publish individual languages for a city — only the eleven groups below, six of which are single languages. A Canadian city on this site names about forty, so the two sections are not the same depth and should not be read as if they were.

What is spoken at home, and whether anyone built for it

The register-versus-census cross-check on the Canadian pages is not possible here: the ACS publishes language in groups, so "Other Indo-European languages" cannot be matched against an institution that names a community.

Spoken most often at homeSpeakers ShareCommunity in the register Institutions
Spanish 1,216 3.8% not mapped to a marker 0
Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese) 1,212 3.8% not mapped to a marker 0
Other Indo-European languages 696 2.2% not mapped to a marker 0
Other Asian and Pacific Island languages 359 1.1% not mapped to a marker 0
French, Haitian, or Cajun 240 0.8% not mapped to a marker 0
Korean 223 0.7% not mapped to a marker 0
Other and unspecified languages 161 0.5% not mapped to a marker 0
German or other West Germanic languages 134 0.4% not mapped to a marker 0
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic languages 112 0.4% not mapped to a marker 0
Vietnamese 104 0.3% not mapped to a marker 0

The rest of the profile

CharacteristicHereCanada
Residents 65 and over 6.5% 16.8%
Residents 85 and over 0.8% 1.9%
Residents 20 to 24 32.4% 6.5%
Arrived 2016 to 2021 50.2% 29.4%
Non-permanent residents — —
Speak a non-official language at home 14% —
Renter households 68.7% 35%
Spending 30% or more on shelter — —
Participation rate 64.7% 63.5%
Unemployment rate 7.5% 5.2%
Median household income, 2020 45097 $ —
Median after-tax household income, 2020 — —
Prevalence of low income (LIM-AT) 32.1% —
Bachelor degree or higher 62.5% —

The one thing to keep in mind

Five-year estimates pooled over 2019–2023, so a figure is an average of the period rather than a single year, and every value carries a margin of error this extract does not keep. Unlike the Canadian census, which counts everyone, the ACS is a sample — a small place's figures are correspondingly uncertain. ACS five-year estimate for the incorporated place, which is the city proper. It will differ from the figure in wander.regions, which is sometimes a metropolitan population.

Source: American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates — Table-based summary file, 2023, United States Census Bureau, under the US federal government work, public domain. National comparison: The United States row of the same ACS tables, not an average of places — roughly a third of Americans live outside any incorporated place, so summing places would understate the country.

3

The communities the register shows

A community appears in the business register before it appears in prose — a national church, a society, a credit union, a newspaper. Those are counted as institutions, and they are what suggests residents. A restaurant serving a cuisine is counted separately as trade, because every city has those and they say nothing about who lives nearby. The ranking is by institutions.

CommunityInstitutions WorshipTrade Where it shows
Afghan 1 — —
Afghan Mini Daycare Center
Islamic 1 1 —
Masjid Al Farouq
Italian — — 1
Dutch — — 1
French — — 1
4

Where the communities are

Streets, not neighbourhood names. The data knows that Greek institutions sit on one street and Greek restaurants on another; it does not know the word "Greektown", so it does not use it.

5

What the city is made of

Every business on file, grouped by the sector it trades in. This is the economic-development view: where the 1,254 businesses actually are, and the specific trades inside each sector.

SectorBusinesses ShareWhat is in it
Business 110 8.8% consulting (39) · government (27) · association (23) · accounting (9) · foundation (3) · vending (1)
Living 87 6.9% place of worship (31) · apartment (24) · daycare (9) · veterinary (5) · cleaning (5) · property management (4) · furniture (3) · laundry (2)
Construction 69 5.5% home builder (21) · painting (11) · general contractor (6) · excavating (6) · plumbing (6) · tiny home (4) · concrete (3) · electrician (3)
Dining 55 4.4% restaurant (46) · pizza (6) · pubs (2) · fast food (1)
Health 46 3.7% physician (10) · optical (6) · medical clinic (5) · fitness club (3) · chiro (2) · pharmacy (2) · home healthcare (1)
Beauty 40 3.2% hair stylist (26) · dentist (9) · barber (3) · bank (1)
Education 39 3.1% school (26) · library (8) · writing (5)
Automotive 34 2.7% autos (12) · auto repair (11) · detailing (1) · motorcycle (1)
Retail 31 2.5% gifts (8) · flowers (4) · jeweler (4) · antiques (3) · convenience (3) · toys (3) · photography (2) · fuel (2)
Finance 28 2.2% insurance (11) · bank (9) · credit union (4) · real estate (3)
Agribusiness 25 2% landscaping (13) · livestock (5) · fresh produce (3) · fertilizer (3) · dairy (1)
Realty 24 1.9% real estate (24)
Travel 21 1.7% motel (7) · travel agent (3) · parking (2) · truck rental (2) · bnb (2) · hotel (1)
Entertainment 18 1.4% amusement (5) · video (3) · museum (3) · video producer (3) · nightclub (1) · music instruments (1) · aquarium (1)
Logistics 16 1.3% storage (11) · truck transportation (3) · railroad (1)
Food 16 1.3% grocer (5) · baker (5) · ice cream (5) · catering (1)
Media 15 1.2% books (7) · signs (4) · printing (2) · advertising (2)
Retail Goods 13 1%
Tech 13 1% computers (10) · wireless (1)
Law 11 0.9% lawyer (3)
6

The franchises already here

Brands from a register of 2,024 franchise systems, matched into this city by name. A high count is a signal in both directions: the territory works, and it may be taken.

11 of these brands are a single common word — Metro, Avenue, Budget — so their counts include businesses that merely share the word. They are marked rather than dropped.

BrandCategory HereWorldwide
U-Haul car 3 13,700
Bank of America bank 2 —
Budget Rent A Car car 2 1,900
Baskin Robbins dessert 1 2,800
Blockbuster Video video 1 5,900
Burger King fastfood 1 11,000
Curves For Women fitness 1 10,000
Dairy Queen fastfood 1 5,900
Fantastic Sams hair 1 1,350
Holiday Inn businesshotel 1 —
Holiday Inn Express familyhotel 1 —
Jack in the Box fastfood 1 2,079
Pita Pit deli 1 220
Pizza Hut pizza 1 10,000
Rite Aid pharmacy 1 5,000
Taco Bell tacos 1 5,845
Taco Del Mar fastfood 1 260
Taco Time fastfood 1 300
Safeway name only supermarket 3 1,767
Starbucks name only coffee 2 3,500
Makro name only home 1 33
Manor name only retail 1 —
Marriott name only upscalehotel 1 2,800
Progressive name only supermarket 1 150
Renaissance name only upscalehotel 1 —
Sears name only inc 1 2,300
ShopKo name only retail 1 135
SuperCuts name only inc 1 2,000
YMCA name only fitness 1 —
7

Real estate as a local trade

Four unrelated jobs share the name: selling existing homes, owning and letting them, managing them for someone else, and building new ones. For anyone weighing a move or a licence these are the counts — and the ownership question goes to /property, which answers it building by building.

Real estate is a local job market in its own right, and four unrelated trades get the same name. Counts are businesses filed under each trade in the register, which lists a brokerage once however many agents work there — so this measures firms, not licensees.

Selling homes

5312
27 firms · LQ 0.5

Offices of agents and brokers — the resale market, and the biggest single trade in most Canadian cities.

Named in the register
  • ABC Associates — 1825 Ne Wheatland Dr
  • Associated Brokers — 405 S Grand Ave
  • Beasley Realty — 515 E Main St
  • Coldwell Banker — 330 N Grand Ave # A
  • Evergreen Housing — 200 SW Elm St
  • Experience Mortgage — 1205 SE Professional Mall Blvd
  • H and R Development — 252 E Main St
  • Mej — 1552 Kirkendahl Rd
  • Michael Gordon Summit Realty — 145 SE Kamiaken St
  • Midway Property Management — 640 Ne Maiden Ln APT 6
  • Real Estate Maintenance Service — 20991 State Route 195
  • Summit Realty NW — 125 SE High St
  • US Bank Home Mortgage — 301 E Main St
  • Zbib and Itani Real Estate — 710 SE Edge Knoll Dr

Owning and letting

5311
24 firms · LQ 3.09

Lessors of real estate: the buildings themselves, filed under the building rather than the owner.

Named in the register
  • All American Properties — P.O. BOX 715
  • Apartment Rentals — 1325 NE Valley Rd # 25
  • Campus Commons Apartments — 1920 Ne Terre View Dr
  • College Crest Apartments — 1555 NE Merman Dr # A1
  • Glendimer Apartments — 125 NW Larry St APT 30
  • Hansen Properties — 1445 NW Orion Dr
  • Jean M Jack — 603 Johnson Rd
  • Maple Valley Apartment — 2290 NE Westwood Dr
  • North Campus Heights Apts — 1540 NE Merman Dr
  • Pioneer Square Apartments — 220 SE Kamiaken St
  • Providence Court Apartments — 880 NE Providence Ct
  • Schulhausers Home Inspections — P.O. BOX 93
  • Summerhill APT — 1915 Ne Terre View Dr 66d
  • Willow Place Apartments — 1125 NE Valley Rd

Managing for owners

5313
4 firms · LQ 1.9

Property managers, who run buildings the landlord does not.

Named in the register
  • Eb and Kc Maintenance — 2001 Little Rd
  • Housing and Dining Maintenance — P.O. BOX 64116
  • Partners In Grime Window Wshg — 1715 NW Lamont St
  • Photon Production Services — 630 SW City View St

Building new homes

2361
31 firms · LQ 1.62

Residential builders and the general contractors who work for them.

Named in the register
  • Design Renovations — 51 Gray Rd
  • Golden Hills Mobile Home Park — 260 NW Golden Hills Dr # 1
  • Harris Works — 515 SE High St
  • J L S — P.O. BOX 848
  • Lacy Construction — 521 NW Sunset Dr
  • McKennon Construction — 775 SE Edge Knoll Dr
  • Orazi Construction Co — 1005 SE Kamiaken St
  • P and J Contractors — 3001 Pullman Albion Rd
  • Rolling Hills Construction — 1515 SW Wadleigh Dr
  • S Bohn — 10691 State Route 27
  • Schulhauser Construction — 550 SE Mckenzie St
  • Sevdys Modern View Mobile Ct — 605 NW Fisk St
  • Sullivan Construction — 1451 Steiner Rd
  • Willow Grove — 1715 NW State St

On "how many doors"

How many doors a landlord holds is not in any of this. The register files an apartment building under the building, not its owner, and carries no unit count; there is no open dataset of Canadian landlords by portfolio. Where this research has established ownership it is in the /property record for the city, building by building, which is a different and much slower exercise.

8

Work where you go to them

The Ultimate 411 half of local: everything where the customer does not have to come to you.

A shop needs the customer to walk in. These 157 services do the opposite — the mobile mechanic, the mobile groomer, the bookkeeper, the junk haul — and they are the ones a person can start without a lease. 0 of them already match a trait filed in this city's register.

The 157 Service=1 rows in search.local: work where the provider travels to the customer. "present" counts businesses already filed under that exact trait name; a blank is a coverage gap, not proof of absence, because the two vocabularies were built separately.

home services

Short-Term Rental TurnoverAppliance InstallationBabyproofing & Safety InstallsCarpet & Upholstery CleaningDeep CleaningDrywall RepairErrand RunningExterior PaintingFence & Deck StainingFurniture AssemblyGarden Weeding & MaintenanceGrocery Pickup & DeliveryGutter CleaningHandyman (General Repairs)Hedge & Shrub TrimmingHouse CleaningHouse SittingInterior PaintingJunk Removal & Dump RunsLandscape Design & PlantingLawn MowingFall Leaf CleanupMove-In / Move-Out CleaningMoving Help (Labour Only)Moving with TruckOffice CleaningPersonal ShopperPressure WashingMove Things Around the HouseSnow Shovelling & RemovalPacking & UnpackingTV & Picture MountingWardrobe StylingWindow Cleaning

events

BartenderDesignated Driver (Your Car)CateringTents, Tables & ChairsFloristFuneral & Celebration of Life ArrangementsGame-Day Bus or VanBook a Pub for Your GroupKaraoke Machine RentalParty Bus & Group ShuttlePub Crawl HostTaxi to the PubSports & Game PhotographyStag & Doe / Jack & Jill PlanningTailgate Party SetupTrivia Night HostVenue SourcingBig-Game Watch Party SetupWedding OfficiantWedding Planner / Coordinator

pets

Aquarium & Terrarium CleaningCatio (Cat Patio) BuildChicken Coop BuildDog House BuildDog TrainingDog WalkingHome Pet BoardingLost Pet SearchMobile Dog GroomingOvernight Pet SittingBuild & Install a Pet DoorPet Cages & EnclosuresPet Fencing & Dog RunsPet PhotographyPet-Proofing Your HomePet Sitting & Dog WalkingPet TaxiYard Poop Scooping

luxury

Chauffeur & Luxury CarDJ & Sound Gear RentalDJEvent PhotographerEvent PlannerLive MusiciansHair & Makeup ArtistMatchmakerPersonal ConciergePortrait & Headshot PhotographerPrivate ChefVideographerVIP / Social Club MembershipWedding PhotographerYacht & Boat Charter

healthcare

Wheelchair-Accessible TransportGrab Bars, Ramps & Home AccessibilityLight Housekeeping for SeniorsCooking & Meal Prep for SeniorsMedical Appointment EscortMedication & Appointment RemindersMobility Equipment RentalRespite Care for Family CaregiversSenior CompanionshipTech Help for SeniorsWalking Companion

sporting goods

Bike Tune-UpBorrow a Bike or E-BikeBorrow Camping GearBorrow Golf ClubsBorrow Hockey GearBorrow Ice SkatesBorrow a Kayak, Canoe or PaddleboardBorrow Skis, Poles & Ski BootsBorrow a Snowboard & Snow BootsSkate SharpeningSki & Snowboard Tuning

sports

Backyard Rink BuildLocal Fishing GuideGolf CaddieFind Players for a Pickup GamePrivate Sports LessonJoin or Build a Rec League TeamBook Ice, Courts & FieldsWorkout & Sports BuddyRoommates Who Also Like Sports

business

BookkeepingStart a Local BusinessCareer Coaching & RésumésFind a Local ManufacturerFind Local Work / Contract GigsLocal Advertising PlacementPrototype & Small-Batch ProductionTranslation & InterpretationWebsite & Online Presence

outdoors

Brush & Land ClearingChainsaw Rental (from a local owner)Firewood (Cut, Split & Delivered)Log Bucking & Cutting (Chainsaw)Portable SawmillingSmall-Lot Logging & Land ClearingStump GrindingTree FellingWood Splitting

construction

CarpenterElectricianHeating & Cooling (HVAC)Mobile MechanicPlumberRoof RepairSmall Engine RepairWelder / Metal Fabrication

travel

Airport Transfer & Car ServiceCorporate & Business TravelCruise BookingFamily Travel for a WeddingBereavement / Funeral TravelLeisure Travel PlanningLocal Tour Guide

tools

Camera & Lens RentalGenerator RentalLog Splitter RentalParty Equipment RentalPower Tool RentalTrailer & Truck Rental
9

Schools and colleges

wander.schools is a post-secondary table — universities and colleges. K-12 public and private schools are not in it, and only 7 of its 1,686 rows carry coordinates, so these are listed and not mapped.

In the business register

Where schooling shows up as a business rather than an institution — which is where K-12, tutoring and childcare appear.

school 26daycare 9
10

Health and care

What a person moving a parent here would ask first. The register files clinics and pharmacies; it has no category for a hospital at all, so hospitals are matched by name and the limit is stated rather than hidden.

Medical clinics5
Pharmacies2
Dental practices9

Matched on the name "hospital"

  • Pullan Regional Hospital — 835 SE Bishop Blvd
  • Pullman Memorial Hospital — 1125 Ne Washington St
  • Public Hospital Dist 1 A — 1620 SE Summit CT
  • Alpine Animal Hospital — 4853 State Route 270

geonet carries no 'hospital' trait, so these are matched on the business name. A distance-to-hospital figure needs a source that states hospital locations.

12

What this record cannot tell you

Named in full, because the gaps are the part most likely to be misread as an answer.

  • Census figures are 2021, taken on 11 May 2021: income is for 2020 and the labour figures were measured mid-pandemic, so the unemployment rate on this page is a 2021 reading rather than a current one.
  • wander.schools is now readable, but it holds universities and colleges only and 1,679 of its 1,686 rows have no coordinates. K-12 public and private schools need a separate source — in Ontario the Ministry of Education school finder, in British Columbia the provincial school list. wander.citytowns, hotels and territories remain denied to the ru user.
  • No 'hospital' trait exists in geonet; distance to a hospital needs an external source such as StatCan's Open Database of Healthcare Facilities.
  • 0.2% of businesses here carry no coordinates, so a map or address lookup would miss them. Postal codes reach 100%.

Built from

  • geonet.spokane — the local business register
  • wander.regions — city name, population, metro
  • search.local — trait vocabulary and the come-to-you services
  • search.cozfranchises — 2,024 franchise brands