The Jackson metropolitan area, officially the Jackson, MS Metropolitan Statistical Area, is a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the central region of the U.S. state of Mississippi that covers eight counties: Copiah, Hinds, Holmes, Madison, Rankin, Simpson, Yazoo and Scott. As of the 2020 census, the Jackson MSA had a population of 619,968. According to 2025 estimates, the population has slightly decreased to 609,847. Jackson is the principal city of the MSA.

Counties CountySeat(s)2025 estimate2020 censusChangeAreaDensityHindsJackson & Raymond RankinBrandon MadisonCanton ScottForest CopiahHazlehurst SimpsonMendenhall YazooYazoo City HolmesLexington Total

Communities Places with more than 100,000 inhabitants

• Jackson

° Jackson is the capital of and the most populous city in the State of Mississippi. It is one of the county seats of Hinds County (Raymond being the other). As of the 2020 census, Jackson's population was 153,701.

Places with 25,000-99,999 inhabitants Clinton Madison Pearl Brandon

Places with 10,000 to 24,999 inhabitants

Brookhaven Byram Canton Flowood Ridgeland Vicksburg Yazoo City

Places with 1,000 to 9,999 inhabitants

Crystal Springs Durant Edwards Flora Florence Gluckstadt Goodman Hazlehurst Lexington Magee Mendenhall Pelahatchie Pickens Raymond Richland Tchula Wesson

Places with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants

Beauregard Bentonia Bolton Braxton Cruger D'Lo Eden Georgetown Learned Puckett Satartia Star Terry Utica West

Unincorporated places

Acona Anding Benton Brownsville Brozville Camden Carpenter Carter Coxburg Dentville Ebenezer Egypt Eulogy Fannin Franklin Gallman Good Hope Goshen Springs Greenfield Gulde Gwin Harrisville Holly Bluff Hopewell Hopewell Landing Howard Ituma Johns Langford Leesburg Little Yazoo Marcella Martinsville Midway Mileston Montgomery Oakley Oil City Oregon Owens Wells Piney Woods Pinola Pluto Pocahontas Quofaloma Richland Sandhill Scotland Sharon Thornton Tinsley Tolarville Vaughan Whitfield

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 497,197 people, 180,556 households, and 127,704 families residing within the MSA. The racial makeup of the MSA was 53.02% White, 45.29% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 0.60% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.98% of the population.

Geography and climate The Jackson metropolitan area possesses a humid subtropical climate, with very hot, humid summers and mild winters. Rain is very evenly spread throughout the year, and snow can fall in wintertime, although heavy snowfall is relatively rare. Much of the areas rainfall occurs during thunderstorms. Thunder is heard on roughly 70 days per annum. The Jackson metropolitan area lies in a region prone to severe thunderstorms which can produce large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes.

The most damaging tornado in Mississippi history occurred on March 3, 1966, when an EF-5 tornado spawned in southwest Hinds County and proceeded to move northeasterly for several hours until finally lifting in southwest Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. The storm, called the Candlestick Park tornado for a destroyed Jackson shopping center, killed 58 and injured 216.

City of Jackson Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Rec High °F 83 85 89 94 99 105 106 107 104 95 88 84 Norm High °F 55.1 60.3 68.1 75 82.1 88.9 91.4 91.4 86.4 76.8 66.3 57.9 Norm Low °F 35 38.2 45.4 51.7 61 68.1 71.4 70.3 64.6 52 43.4 37.3 Rec Low °F 2 10 15 27 38 47 51 54 35 26 17 4 Precip (in) 5.67 4.5 5.74 5.98 4.86 3.82 4.69 3.66 3.23 3.42 5.04 5.34Source: USTravelWeather.com

Industry The metro area is home to several major industries. These include electrical equipment and machinery, processed food, and primary and fabricated metal products. The surrounding area supports agricultural development of livestock, soybeans, cotton, and poultry. Education

Colleges and universities Belhaven University (Jackson) Copiah-Lincoln Community College (Wesson) Delta Technical College (Ridgeland) www.deltatechnicalcollege.com Hinds Community College (Raymond with branch campuses in Jackson, Pearl, and Utica) Holmes Community College (Goodman with branch campus in Ridgeland) Jackson State University (Jackson) Millsaps College (Jackson) Mississippi College (Clinton) Mississippi College School of Law (Jackson) Reformed Theological Seminary (Jackson) Tougaloo College (Jackson) University of Mississippi Medical Center (Jackson) University Center (Jackson) - serves as branch campuses for the University of Mississippi, Mississippi State University, and University of Southern Mississippi. Wesley Biblical Seminary (Jackson) Wesley College (Florence)

Public school districts Canton Public School District (serves the city of Canton) Clinton Public School District (serves the city of Clinton) Copiah County School District (serves Copiah County outside Hazlehurst) Hazlehurst City School District (serves the city of Hazlehurst) Hinds County School District (serves Hinds County outside Jackson and Clinton) Holmes County School District (serves Holmes County) Jackson Public School District (serves the city of Jackson) Madison County School District (serves Madison County outside Canton) Pearl Public School District (serves the city of Pearl) Rankin County School District (serves Rankin County outside Pearl) Simpson County School District (serves Simpson County) Yazoo City Municipal School District (serves Yazoo City) Yazoo County School District (serves Yazoo County outside Yazoo City)

Private schools Benton Academy (Benton) Canton Academy (Canton) Central Hinds Academy (Raymond) Central Holmes Christian School (Lexington) Christ Covenant School (Ridgeland) Clinton Christian Academy (Clinton) Copiah Academy (Gallman) Discovery Christian School (Florence) East Rankin Academy (Pelahatchie) Emmanuel Christian School (Jackson) First Presbyterian Day School (Jackson) Hartfield Academy (Flowood) Hillcrest Christian School (Jackson) Jackson Academy (Jackson) Jackson Preparatory School (Flowood) Madison-Ridgeland Academy (Madison) Manchester Academy (Yazoo City) Mount Salus Christian School (Clinton) New Jerusalem Christian School (Jackson) Park Place Christian Academy (Pearl) Piney Woods Country Life School (rural Rankin County) Home REBUL Academy (Learned) Simpson Academy (Mendenhall) St. Augustine Christian School (Ridgeland) St. Andrew's Episcopal School (middle and upper schools in Ridgeland; lower school in Jackson) St. Joseph Catholic School (Madison) Tri-County Academy (Flora)

Media

Newspapers

Daily The Clarion-Ledger statewide general interest newspaper, at http://www.clarionledger.com

Weekly Copiah Monitor, weekly newspaper serving Copiah County (home office Hazelhurst), at http://www.copiahmonitor.com Hinds County Gazette, weekly newspaper serving Hinds County (home office Raymond), at http://www.hindscountygazette.com Jackson Advocate, weekly newspaper and oldest newspaper serving the state's African-American community, at http://www.jacksonadvocate.com Jackson Free Press, alternative newspaper, with focus on politics, entertainment and culture; blogs and discussion at http://www.jacksonfreepress.com La Noticia de Mississippi – Voz de la Comunidad Latina – The Mississippi Hispanic Newspaper at http://www.lanoticianewspaper.com/ The Mississippi Link weekly statewide general interest newspaper (home office Jackson), focusing on the African American community, at http://www.themississippilink.com Mississippi Business Journal weekly newspaper (home office Jackson), with focus on business and economic development, at http://www.msbusiness.com The Northside Sun weekly newspaper, with focus on Northeast Jackson, Madison and Ridgeland, at http://www.northsidesun.com B Fit and Healthy Magazine, Health and Fitness Magazine for Mississippians, at http://bfitandhealthymagazine.com Holmes County Herald, weekly newspaper serving Holmes County (home office Lexington, at http://www.holmescountyherald.com Madison County Herald, weekly newspaper serving Madison County (home office Canton), at http://www.mcherald.com Madison County Journal, weekly newspaper serving mostly Madison County suburbs of Jackson (home office Ridgeland), at http://www.onlinemadison.net Rankin County News, weekly newspaper serving Rankin County (home office Brandon), at http://www.rankincn.com Magee Herald/Simpson County News, weekly newspaper serving Simpson County (offices in Magee and Mendenhall), at //www.simpsoncounty.ms Yazoo Herald, weekly newspaper serving Yazoo County (home office Yazoo City), at http://www.yazooherald.net

Historic The Jackson Mississippian, circulated during the 19th century Jackson Daily News, evening newspaper in Jackson (published 1907 to 1934; merged with The Clarion-Ledger in 1934 but editorially operated separately; discontinued publishing in 1982) Jackson State-Times, daily newspaper in Jackson (published 1952 to 1963)

Publishing University Press of Mississippi, the state's only not-for-profit publishing house and collective publisher for Mississippi's eight state universities, producing works on local history, culture and society

Television All stations are licensed to Jackson unless otherwise noted: Channel 3, WLBT: NBC Channel 6, WJMF-LD Channel 12, WJTV: The CW Channel 16, WAPT: ABC/CBS Channel 23, WWJX: TCT Channel 29, WMPN: PBS/Mississippi Public Broadcasting Channel 34, WRBJ-TV: TBN, licensed to Magee Channel 35, WLOO: My Network TV, licensed to Jackson suburb Tougaloo Channel 40, WDBD: Fox

FM radio

88.5 WJSU: Jazz; National Public Radio 90.1 WMPR: Variety 91.3 WMPN: Mississippi Public Broadcasting; National Public Radio; Public Radio 92.1 WJNS-FM: Religious 92.5 WQST: American Family Radio; Religious 93.5 WHJT: Country (93.1 FM translator) 93.9 WJAI: Air1; Christian Contemporary 94.1 WYAD-LP: Gospel Music 94.7 WJLV: K-Love; Christian Contemporary 95.5 WHLH: Gospel Music 96.3 WUSJ: Country 97.3 WFMN: Supertalk Mississippi; Talk 97.7 WRBJ-FM: Hip Hop 98.7 WJKK: Adult Contemporary 99.7 WJMI: Hip Hop 100.5 WRTM-FM: Urban Contemporary 100.9 WJXN: Hip Hop 101.1 WLIN: Adult contemporary 101.7 WYOY: Top-40 102.9 WMSI: Country 103.9 WYAB: Talk 104.3 WPBP-LP: Community radio (Pearl) 105.1 WJDX-FM: Mainstream urban 105.9 WRKS: Sports 106.7 WSTZ-FM: Classic Rock 107.5 WKXI-FM: Urban Contemporary

AM radio 620 WJDX: News/Talk (104.7 FM translator) 780 WIIN: Blues (102.1 FM translator) 810 WSJC: Religious (95.9 FM translator) 930 WSFZ: News/Talk with programming from Black Information Network (98.1 FM translator) 970 WFQY: Hip Hop (99.1 FM translator) 1120 WTWZ: Religious/Oldies (102.5 FM translator) 1180 WJNT: News/Talk (96.9 FM translator) 1240 WZQK: Classic hits (94.3 FM translator) 1300 WOAD: Gospel Music (103.5 FM translator) 1370 WMGO: Urban Contemporary 1400 WJQS: Sports (106.3 FM translator)

Points of interest

Sports

Sports teams in the Jackson Metro area

Mississippi Brilla—minor league soccer team in the Premier Development League. The team plays at Clinton High School in Clinton, Mississippi. Mississippi Raiders—Arena Indoor Football League team which plays its home games at the Mississippi Coliseum.

Summer Training Camp New Orleans Saints, Jackson's Millsaps College is the former summer home for the New Orleans Saints of the NFL from 2006 to 2010

Sports venues in the Jackson Metro area Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium—Concerts, Football (home of Jackson State University) Mississippi Coliseum—Basketball, Hockey, Track, Rodeo, Concerts Smith Wills Stadium—Baseball, Softball, Football, Soccer, Concerts Trustmark Park—Baseball Parham Bridges—Tennis

Professional events Sanderson Farms Championship-PGA Tour event held in May at Country Club of Jackson

Former professional sports teams