Demographics of Essex County, Massachusetts

Essex County, Massachusetts had 826,653 people on July 1, 2025, by the Census Bureau’s estimate: +18,854 since July 2020. Age, income, poverty, housing and origin below come from the American Community Survey, averaged over 2020–2024, each with its margin of error.

Essex County, in four figures

826,653
Population: July 1, 2025, Vintage 2025 estimate.; +2.3%
Change since July 2020: +18,854 people.; 41.2 ±0.2
Median age: ACS 2020–⁠2024.; $101,883 ±$1,515
Median household income: ACS 2020–⁠2024, in 2024 dollars.

Population, year by year

July 1 estimates from the Census Bureau’s Vintage 2025. Each year's change is births less deaths, net moves from abroad and net moves from elsewhere in the country, with the Bureau's small residual. The 2020 row's components run 3 months, from the April census to July 1.

Essex County, Massachusetts's population grew 2.3% from July 2020 to July 2025, against +3.1% nationally

The July 1 estimate of Essex County, Massachusetts's resident population and the nation's, each year of the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025, as a share of its July 2020 level (= 100).

Source: The Census Bureau

About this chart

The figures

Essex County, Massachusetts's population grew 2.3% from July 2020 to July 2025, against +3.1% nationally. The July 1 estimate of Essex County, Massachusetts's resident population and the nation's, each year of the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025, as a share of its July 2020 level (= 100).
July 1	Population	Index	United States
2020	807,799	100.0	100.0
2021	807,387	99.9	100.2
2022	810,054	100.3	100.7
2023	817,647	101.2	101.6
2024	826,170	102.3	102.5
2025	826,653	102.3	103.1

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Population of Essex County, Massachusetts on July 1 of each year, Vintage 2025
July 1	Population	Change	Births less deaths	From abroad	From elsewhere in the country
2020	807,799	−2,144	−675	+94	−1,529
2021	807,387	−412	+788	+2,016	−3,731
2022	810,054	+2,667	+1,005	+8,525	−6,738
2023	817,647	+7,593	+1,108	+9,333	−2,712
2024	826,170	+8,523	+1,314	+9,455	−2,195
2025	826,653	+483	+1,553	+4,109	−5,184

Age, 2020–2024

The median age is 41.2 ±0.2: for men 39.7 ±0.2 and for women 42.6 ±0.2. Shares are of everyone the survey counts, in the Bureau’s sex-by-age table (B01001).

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People in Essex County by age, ACS 2020–2024
Age	People	Share	Massachusetts	United States
Under 5	43,619 ±43	5.4% ±<0.1	5.0% ±<0.1	5.6% ±<0.1
5 to 17	125,866 ±1,938	15.5% ±0.2	14.4% ±0.1	16.3% ±<0.1
18 to 24	71,532 ±1,433	8.8% ±0.2	9.8% ±0.1	9.1% ±<0.1
25 to 44	205,506 ±2,053	25.3% ±0.3	27.1% ±0.1	26.9% ±<0.1
45 to 64	216,425 ±2,228	26.6% ±0.3	25.9% ±0.1	24.8% ±<0.1
65 and over	150,106 ±2,362	18.5% ±0.3	17.9% ±0.1	17.2% ±<0.1

Income and poverty, 2020–2024

Median household income is $101,883 ±$1,515, and income per person $54,665 ±$814, in 2024 dollars. The median is $103,960 ±$527 in Massachusetts and $80,734 ±$166 in the United States.

Households by income

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Households in Essex County by income, ACS 2020–2024
Household income	Households	Share	Massachusetts	United States
Under $25,000	41,761 ±1,863	13.3% ±0.6	13.2% ±0.2	14.6% ±<0.1
$25,000 to $49,999	39,738 ±1,816	12.7% ±0.6	12.5% ±0.2	16.7% ±<0.1
$50,000 to $74,999	38,084 ±1,699	12.2% ±0.5	12.0% ±0.2	15.5% ±<0.1
$75,000 to $99,999	34,458 ±1,466	11.0% ±0.5	10.7% ±0.2	12.6% ±<0.1
$100,000 to $149,999	55,575 ±2,093	17.7% ±0.7	17.5% ±0.2	17.5% ±<0.1
$150,000 to $199,999	37,681 ±1,274	12.0% ±0.4	11.9% ±0.1	9.6% ±<0.1
$200,000 or more	65,850 ±1,671	21.0% ±0.5	22.3% ±0.2	13.4% ±0.1

Poverty by age

The poverty rate is the share of people whose family income is below the federal threshold for their family’s size, of everyone for whom the Bureau determines it (B17020).

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Poverty rate in Essex County by age, ACS 2020–2024
Age	Below poverty	Rate	Massachusetts	United States
All ages	74,710 ±3,280	9.4% ±0.4	10.0% ±0.1	12.5% ±0.1
Under 18	19,936 ±1,582	11.9% ±0.9	11.7% ±0.3	16.1% ±0.1
18 to 59	33,318 ±1,807	7.8% ±0.4	9.3% ±0.2	11.6% ±0.1
60 and over	21,456 ±1,365	10.6% ±0.7	10.4% ±0.2	11.0% ±<0.1

Housing, 2020–2024

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Housing in Essex County, ACS 2020–2024
Measure	Essex County	Massachusetts	United States
Housing units	329,776 ±224	3,030,406 ±453	143,775,355 ±10,234
Occupied	95.0% ±0.3	91.9% ±0.2	89.9% ±0.1
Vacant	5.0% ±0.3	8.1% ±0.2	10.1% ±0.1
Owner occupied	63.5% ±0.7	62.5% ±0.3	65.2% ±0.3
Renter occupied	36.5% ±0.7	37.5% ±0.2	34.8% ±0.1
Median home value	$619,100 ±$3,976	$562,100 ±$2,169	$332,700 ±$236
Median gross rent	$1,756 ±$23	$1,762 ±$9	$1,413 ±$2
Median year built	1960 ±2	1964 ±1	1980 ±1

Occupied and vacant are shares of all housing units; owner and renter occupied are shares of occupied units. Value and rent are medians in 2024 dollars.

Origin and place of birth, 2020–2024

Hispanic or Latino origin is not a race in the Census Bureau’s tables. Here the people of Hispanic origin, of any race, are one row, and everyone else is counted by race alone (B03002), so the rows add to the whole.

Hispanic origin and race

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People in Essex County by Hispanic origin and race, ACS 2020–2024
Origin	People	Share	Massachusetts	United States
Hispanic or Latino	195,593 ±0	24.1% ±<0.1	13.3% ±<0.1	19.3% ±<0.1
White alone, not Hispanic	524,651 ±2,191	64.5% ±0.3	66.6% ±0.1	57.4% ±<0.1
Black alone, not Hispanic	28,297 ±1,116	3.5% ±0.1	6.4% ±0.1	11.9% ±<0.1
Asian alone, not Hispanic	28,724 ±718	3.5% ±0.1	7.3% ±<0.1	5.9% ±<0.1
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	292 ±89	< 0.1% ±<0.1	0.1% ±<0.1	0.5% ±<0.1
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	61 to 287	< 0.1%	< 0.1% ±<0.1	0.2% ±<0.1
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	6,542 ±1,185	0.8% ±0.1	1.2% ±0.1	0.6% ±<0.1
Two or more races, not Hispanic	28,781 ±2,167	3.5% ±0.3	5.1% ±0.1	4.3% ±<0.1

A range (the estimate less and plus its margin) where the Bureau's estimate is too uncertain to state as one number: a coefficient of variation over 30%.

Place of birth and citizenship

“Born a citizen outside the states” counts people born in Puerto Rico, the island areas, or abroad to American parents. Naturalized citizens and those who are not citizens together make up the people born abroad (B05002).

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People in Essex County by place of birth and citizenship, ACS 2020–2024
Born	People	Share	Massachusetts	United States
Born in the state	502,334 ±4,243	61.8% ±0.5	58.7% ±0.2	57.3% ±<0.1
Born in another state	132,070 ±3,479	16.2% ±0.4	20.3% ±0.2	26.9% ±<0.1
Born a citizen outside the states	23,205 ±1,612	2.9% ±0.2	2.9% ±0.1	1.7% ±<0.1
Born abroad	155,445 ±3,502	19.1% ±0.4	18.0% ±0.1	14.1% ±<0.1
Naturalized citizens	86,630 ±2,593	10.7% ±0.3	9.7% ±0.1	7.4% ±<0.1
Not citizens	68,815 ±2,919	8.5% ±0.4	8.3% ±0.1	6.8% ±<0.1

Essex County among the counties of Massachusetts

3rd of 14 by population, July 2025. Every one is listed on the Massachusetts page.

Counties of Massachusetts near Essex County in population, July 2025
County	July 2025	Change since 2020
Middlesex County	1,669,979	+2.8%
Worcester County	888,502	+3.7%
Essex County	826,653	+2.3%
Suffolk County	791,891	+0.1%
Norfolk County	739,749	+2.2%
Bristol County	593,640	+2.9%
Plymouth County	546,829	+3.5%
Hampden County	464,338	+0.1%

Elsewhere on the site

Rankings this appears in

Sources

Census Bureau population estimates — counties and Puerto Rico municipios, with components of change — U.S. Census Bureau · U.S. Government work · retrieved September 25, 2026
American Community Survey 5-year estimates — table-based Summary File · U.S. Government work

Compiled automatically from Census Bureau population estimates — counties and Puerto Rico municipios, with components of change and American Community Survey 5-year estimates — table-based Summary File by a checked SQL query · Editor: Kian O'Connor · How this site is built

Data retrieved September 25, 2026