List of the most populous counties in the United States

Last updated

County population map
2022 Census data County population map.webp
County population map
2022 Census data
A map of the counties and county equivalents of the United States. The 100 most populous counties are highlighted, with counties having more than one million residents in orange and counties having fewer than one million residents in green, based on the results of the April 1, 2020 United States census. Largest counties of the United States by population as of the 2020 United States census.svg
A map of the counties and county equivalents of the United States. The 100 most populous counties are highlighted, with counties having more than one million residents in orange and counties having fewer than one million residents in green, based on the results of the April 1, 2020 United States census.

This is a list of the 100 most populous of the 3,144 counties in the United States based on the national decennial US census conducted on April 1, 2020 and vintage Census population estimates for July 1, 2023. [1]

Contents

Many of the counties on the list include major cities or metropolitan areas in all parts of the United States. Six of the listed counties have consolidated city and county government, namely the City and County of Honolulu, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee, City and County of Philadelphia, City and County of San Francisco, City of Jacksonville and Duval County and City and County of Denver. [2] [3] [4] New York County, Bronx County, Kings County, Queens County and Richmond County are coterminous with the respective boroughs of New York City; they fall under the jurisdiction of the combined city government. Independent cities are not counted.

Many of the most populous counties listed are in Southern California, Illinois, Texas and New York and roughly correspond to the most populous cities in the United States. Counties in the Western United States are typically larger by area, so they often have higher raw populations even with comparable population densities.

List

This list lists the most populous US counties sorted according to both the 2020 official enumeration and 2023 vintage population estimates by the United States Census Bureau (USCB).

RankCountyStateLand areaApril 1,
2020
census
July 1,
2023
estimates
Mid-2020 to
mid-2023 change
County seat
km2 [5] mi2 [6] absolute%
1 Los Angeles California 10,509.874,057.8810,014,0099,663,345-350,664-3.5 Los Angeles
2 Cook Illinois 2,448.38945.335,275,5415,087,072-188,469-3.6 Chicago
3 Harris Texas 4,411.991,703.484,731,1454,835,125103,9802.2 Houston
4 Maricopa Arizona 23,828.269,200.144,420,5684,585,871165,3033.7 Phoenix
5 San Diego California 10,895.124,206.633,298,6343,269,973-28,661-0.9 San Diego
6 Orange 2,047.56790.573,186,9893,135,755-51,234-1.6 Santa Ana
7 Miami-Dade Florida 4,915.061,897.722,701,7672,686,867-14,900-0.6 Miami
8 Dallas Texas 2,256.60871.282,613,5392,606,358-7,181-0.3 Dallas
9 Kings New York 183.4170.822,736,0742,561,225-174,849-6.4 Brooklyn, NYC
10 Riverside California 18,664.707,206.482,418,1852,492,44274,2573.1 Riverside
11 Clark Nevada 20,438.717,891.432,265,4612,336,57371,1123.1 Las Vegas
12 King Washington 5,479.292,115.572,269,6752,271,3801,7050.1 Seattle
13 Queens New York 281.10108.532,405,4642,252,196-153,268-6.8 Queens, NYC
14 San Bernardino California 51,947.2320,056.942,181,6542,195,61113,9570.6 San Bernardino
15 Tarrant Texas 2,236.74863.612,110,6402,182,94772,3073.4 Fort Worth
16 Bexar 3,211.121,239.822,009,3242,087,67978,3553.9 San Antonio
17 Broward Florida 3,133.331,209.791,944,3751,962,53118,1560.9 Fort Lauderdale
18 Santa Clara California 3,341.341,290.101,936,2591,877,592-58,667-3.0 San Jose
19 Wayne Michigan 1,585.28612.081,793,5611,751,169-42,392-2.4 Detroit
20 Middlesex Massachusetts 2,118.14817.821,632,0021,623,952-8,050-0.5 Lowell and Cambridge
21 Alameda California 1,914.05739.021,682,3531,622,188-60,165-3.6 Oakland
22 New York New York 59.1322.831,694,2511,597,451-96,800-5.7 Manhattan, NYC
23 Sacramento California 2,498.42964.641,584,1691,584,2881190.0 Sacramento
24 Philadelphia Pennsylvania 347.32134.101,603,7971,550,542-53,255-3.3 Philadelphia
25 Hillsborough Florida 2,642.341,020.211,459,7621,535,56475,8025.2 Tampa
26 Palm Beach 5,100.001,970.001,492,1911,533,80141,6102.8 West Palm Beach
27 Suffolk New York 2,362.20912.051,525,9201,523,170-2,750-0.2 Riverhead
28 Orange Florida 2,339.87903.431,429,9081,471,41641,5082.9 Orlando
29 Nassau New York 737.41284.721,395,7741,381,715-14,059-1.0 Mineola
30 Bronx 109.0342.101,472,6541,356,476-116,178-7.9 Bronx, NYC
31 Travis Texas 2,564.61990.201,290,1881,334,96144,7733.5 Austin
32 Franklin Ohio 1,378.36532.191,323,8071,326,0632,2560.2 Columbus
33 Oakland Michigan 2,247.24867.661,274,3951,270,426-3,969-0.3 Pontiac
34 Hennepin Minnesota 1,433.79553.591,281,5651,258,713-22,852-1.8 Minneapolis
35 Cuyahoga Ohio 1,184.12457.191,264,8171,233,088-31,729-2.5 Cleveland
36 Allegheny Pennsylvania 1,890.88730.071,250,5781,224,825-25,753-2.1 Pittsburgh
37 Collin Texas 2,178.76841.221,064,4651,195,359130,89412.3 McKinney
38 Wake North Carolina 2,163.21835.221,129,4101,190,27560,8655.4 Raleigh
39 Salt Lake Utah 1,922.50742.281,185,2381,185,8135750.0 Salt Lake City
40 Mecklenburg North Carolina 1,356.75523.841,115,4821,163,70148,2194.3 Charlotte
41 Contra Costa California 1,854.27715.941,165,9271,155,025-10,902-0.9 Martinez
42 Fairfax Virginia 1,012.60390.971,150,3091,141,878-8,431-0.7 Fairfax
43 Fulton Georgia 1,363.98526.631,066,7101,079,10512,3951.2 Atlanta
44 Pima Arizona 23,794.319,187.041,043,4331,063,16219,7291.9 Tucson
45 Montgomery Maryland 1,272.34491.251,062,0611,058,474-3,587-0.3 Rockville
46 Duval Florida 1,974.07762.19995,5671,030,82235,2553.5 Jacksonville
47 Fresno California 15,431.135,957.991,008,6541,017,1628,5080.8 Fresno
48 Denton Texas 2,275.13878.43906,4221,007,703101,28111.2 Denton
49 Westchester New York 1,114.98430.501,004,457990,817-13,640-1.4 White Plains
50 Honolulu Hawaii 1,555.92600.741,016,508989,408-27,100-2.7 Honolulu
51 St. Louis Missouri 1,315.20507.801,004,125987,059-17,066-1.7 Clayton
52 Gwinnett Georgia 1,114.69430.38957,062983,52626,4642.8 Lawrenceville
53 Capitol Connecticut 2,660.801,027.34976,248975,328-920-0.1 Hartford
54 Marion Indiana 1,026.41396.30977,203968,460-8,743-0.9 Indianapolis
55 Pinellas Florida 709.14273.80959,107961,5962,4890.3 Clearwater
56 Bergen New Jersey 603.49233.01955,732957,7362,0040.2 Hackensack
57 Prince George's Maryland 1,250.16482.69967,201947,430-19,771-2.0 Upper Marlboro
58 Erie New York 2,700.561,042.69954,236946,147-8,089-0.8 Buffalo
59 Pierce Washington 4,324.011,669.51921,130928,6967,5660.8 Tacoma
60 DuPage Illinois 848.22327.50932,877921,213-11,664-1.3 Wheaton
61 Fort Bend Texas 2,292885822,779916,77893,99911.4 Richmond
62 Milwaukee Wisconsin 625.23241.40939,489916,205-23,284-2.5 Milwaukee
63 Kern California 21,061.578,131.92909,235913,8204,5850.5 Bakersfield
64 Shelby Tennessee 1,976.61763.17929,744910,042-19,702-2.1 Memphis
65 Hidalgo Texas 4,068.521,570.87870,781898,47127,6903.2 Edinburg
66 Macomb Michigan 1,241.18479.22881,217875,101-6,116-0.7 Mount Clemens
67 El Paso Texas 2,622.861,012.69865,657869,8804,2230.5 El Paso
68 Montgomery Pennsylvania 1,251.07483.04856,553868,74212,1891.4 Norristown
69 Worcester Massachusetts 3,912.881,510.77862,111866,8664,7550.6 Worcester
70 Middlesex New Jersey 800.08308.91863,162863,6234610.1 New Brunswick
71 Essex 326.89126.21863,728851,117-12,611-1.5 Newark
72 Snohomish Washington 5,406.012,087.27827,957844,76116,8042.0 Everett
73 Baltimore Maryland 1,549.59598.30854,535844,703-9,832-1.2 Towson
74 Lee Florida 2,031.88784.51760,822834,57373,7519.7 Fort Myers
75 Ventura California 4,773.691,843.13843,843829,590-14,253-1.7 Ventura
76 Hamilton Ohio 1,051.30405.91830,639827,058-3,581-0.4 Cincinnati
77 Polk Florida 4,6601,798725,046818,33093,28412.9 Bartow
78 Essex Massachusetts 1,275.73492.56809,829810,0892600.0 Salem and Lawrence
79 San Francisco California 121.4046.87873,965808,988-64,977-7.4 San Francisco
80 Oklahoma Oklahoma 1,835.83708.82796,292808,86612,5741.6 Oklahoma City
81 San Joaquin California 3,603.511,391.32779,233800,96521,7322.8 Stockton
82 Multnomah Oregon 1,117.05431.30815,428789,698-25,730-3.2 Portland
83 Cobb Georgia 879.43339.55766,149776,74310,5941.4 Marietta
84 Jefferson Kentucky 985.27380.42782,969772,144-10,825-1.4 Louisville
85 Suffolk Massachusetts 150.6258.15797,936768,425-29,511-3.7 Boston
86 DeKalb Georgia 693.03267.58764,382762,992-1,390-0.2 Decatur
87 Monroe New York 1,702.15657.21759,443748,482-10,961-1.4 Rochester
88 El Paso Colorado 5,508.392,126.80730,395744,21513,8201.9 Colorado Springs
89 Norfolk Massachusetts 1,025.91396.11725,981727,4731,4920.2 Dedham
90 San Mateo California 1,161.37448.41764,442726,353-38,089-5.0 Redwood City
91 Utah Utah 5,188.912,003.45659,399719,17459,7759.1 Provo
92 Jackson Missouri 1,565.55604.46717,204718,5601,3560.2 Independence and Kansas City
93 Denver Colorado 401.36154.97715,522716,5771,0550.1 Denver
94 Davidson Tennessee 1,305.44504.03715,884712,334-3,550-0.5 Nashville
95 Montgomery Texas 2,699.231,042.18620,443711,35490,91114.7 Conroe
96 Lake Illinois 1,149.10443.67714,342708,760-5,582-0.8 Waukegan
97 Hudson New Jersey 119.6346.19724,854705,472-19,382-2.7 Jersey City
98 Will Illinois 2,167.58836.91696,355700,7284,3730.6 Joliet
99 Williamson Texas 2,889.991,115.83609,017697,19188,17414.5 Georgetown
100 Tulsa Oklahoma 1,476.86570.22669,279682,86813,5892.0 Tulsa

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern California</span> American geographic and cultural region

Southern California is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area as well as the Inland Empire. The region generally contains ten of California's 58 counties: Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greater Los Angeles</span> Metropolitan area centered around the city of Los Angeles in California, United States

Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the east, with Los Angeles County in the center, and Orange County to the southeast. The Los Angeles–Anaheim–Riverside combined statistical area (CSA) covers 33,954 square miles (87,940 km2), making it the largest metropolitan region in the United States by land area. With a population of 18.5 million in 2021, it is the second-largest metropolitan area in the United States. The contiguous urban area is 2,281 square miles (5,910 km2), whereas the remainder mostly consists of mountain and desert areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">County (United States)</span> Subdivision used by most states in the United States

In the United States, a county or county equivalent is an administrative or political subdivision of a U.S. state or other territories of the United States which consists of a geographic area with specific boundaries and usually some level of governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 states, while Louisiana and Alaska have functionally equivalent subdivisions called parishes and boroughs, respectively. The specific governmental powers of counties vary widely between the states, with many providing some level of services to civil townships, municipalities, and unincorporated areas. Certain municipalities are in multiple counties; New York City is uniquely partitioned into five counties, referred to at the city government level as boroughs. Some municipalities have been consolidated with their county government to form consolidated city-counties, or have been legally separated from counties altogether to form independent cities. Conversely, those counties in Connecticut, Rhode Island, eight of Massachusetts's 14 counties, and Alaska's Unorganized Borough have no government power, existing only as geographic distinctions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Travis County, Texas</span> County in Texas, U.S.

Travis County is located in Central Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,290,188. It is the fifth-most populous county in Texas. Its county seat and most populous city is Austin, the capital of Texas. The county was established in 1840 and is named in honor of William Barret Travis, the commander of the Republic of Texas forces at the Battle of the Alamo. Travis County is part of the Austin–Round Rock–Georgetown Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located along the Balcones Fault, the boundary between the Edwards Plateau to the west and the Blackland Prairie to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bexar County, Texas</span> County in Texas, United States

Bexar County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in South Texas and its county seat is San Antonio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riverside, California</span> City in the United States

Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire and in Riverside County, and is about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is also part of the Greater Los Angeles area. Riverside is the 59th-most-populous city in the United States and the 12th-most-populous city in California. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 314,998. Along with San Bernardino, Riverside is a principal city in the nation's 13th-largest Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA); the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA ranks in population just below San Francisco (4,749,008) and above Detroit (4,392,041).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sun Belt</span> Region of the southern United States

The Sun Belt is a region of the United States generally considered stretching across the Southeast and Southwest. Another rough definition of the region is the area south of the 36th parallel. Several climates can be found in the region — desert/semi-desert, Mediterranean (California), humid subtropical and tropical.

There are 13 United States cities with sports teams competing in the four major leagues of the United States and Canada: Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, National Football League, and National Hockey League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 United States census</span> 18th United States national census

The 1960 United States census, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 179,323,175, an increase of 19 percent over the 151,325,798 persons enumerated during the 1950 census. This was the first census in which all states recorded a population of over 200,000. This census's data determined the electoral votes for the 1964 and 1968 presidential elections. This was also the last census in which New York was the most populous state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1970 United States census</span> 19th United States national census

The 1970 United States census, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 203,392,031, an increase of 13.4 percent over the 179,323,175 persons enumerated during the 1960 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">America's Most Endangered Places</span> List by the U.S. National Trust for Historic Preservation

America's 11 Most Endangered Places or America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places is a list of places in the United States that the National Trust for Historic Preservation considers the most endangered. It aims to inspire Americans to preserve examples of architectural and cultural heritage that could be "relegated to the dustbins of history" without intervention.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greater San Antonio</span> Metropolitan Area in Texas, United States

Greater San Antonio, officially designated San Antonio–New Braunfels, is an eight-county metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Texas defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The metropolitan area straddles South Texas and Central Texas and is on the southwestern corner of the Texas Triangle. The official 2020 U.S. census showed the metropolitan area's population at 2,558,143—up from a reported 1,711,103 in 2000—making it the 24th largest metropolitan area in the United States. Downtown Austin and Downtown San Antonio are approximately 80 miles (129 km) apart, and both fall along the Interstate 35 corridor. This combined metropolitan region of San Antonio–Austin has approximately 5 million people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riverside County, California</span> County in California, United States

Riverside County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,418,185, making it the fourth-most populous county in California and the 10th-most populous in the United States. The name was derived from the city of Riverside, which is the county seat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego County, California</span> County in California, United States

San Diego County, officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fifth-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is San Diego, the second-most populous city in California and the eighth-most populous city in the United States. It is the southwesternmost county in the 48 contiguous United States, and is a border county. It is also home to 18 Native American tribal reservations, the most of any county in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hispanics and Latinos in California</span> Ethnic group in the U.S. state of California

Hispanic and Latino Californians are residents of the state of California who are of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 39.4% of the state's population, making it the largest ethnicity in California.

References

  1. "More Counties Saw Population Gains in 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  2. "This Is Your City and County of Honolulu Government". City and County of Honolulu. Archived from the original on January 20, 2008. Retrieved January 23, 2008.
  3. "City and County Organizational Chart". City and County of San Francisco. Archived from the original on February 3, 2008. Retrieved January 23, 2008.
  4. "Active Colorado Municipalities as of January 26, 2010". Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Archived from the original on December 12, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  5. GeoHive - the United States of America - US States and Counties Archived April 30, 2012, at the Wayback Machine (attached Excel spreadsheet)
  6. The area in square kilometers of the column to the left divided by 2.589988110336 (1.6093442).