Lake Wales is a medium-sized city located in the state of Florida. With a population of 16,681 people and 12 associated neighborhoods, Lake Wales is the 163rd largest community in Florida. Much of the housing stock in Lake Wales was built relatively recently. The construction of new real estate can often be taken as an indication that the local Lake Wales economy is robust, and that jobs or other amenities are attracting an influx of new residents. This seems to be the case in Lake Wales, where the median household income is $55,799.00.

The education level of Lake Wales citizens is a little higher than the average for US cities and towns: 22.02% of adults in Lake Wales have at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Lake Wales in 2022 was $27,794, which is lower middle income relative to Florida and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $111,176 for a family of four. However, Lake Wales contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Lake Wales is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Lake Wales home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Lake Wales residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Lake Wales also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 30.70% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Lake Wales include English, German, Irish, Polish, and Italian.

The most common language spoken in Lake Wales is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Polish.