Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $16,620 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,292. About 9.9% of families and 13.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.6% of those under age 18 and 14.0% of those age 65 or over. The Town of Merkel is served by the Merkel Independent School District. According to the Köppen climate classification, Merkel has a semiarid climate, "BSk" on climate maps.