Connecticut Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Connecticut, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Connecticut. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Connecticut. The estimated population of Connecticut is 3,605,330 people, with a median age of 41.

We can look at the total population in Connecticut over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
3,605,330
+0.97%
+0.30%
2020
3,570,549
 -0.13% -
2019
3,575,074
 -0.18% -
2018
3,581,504
 -0.36% -
2017
3,594,478
 - -

Population of Connecticut by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
64.9%
68.1%
 -4.70%
Black/African American
10%
9.8%
 +2.04%
Native
0.1%
0.1%
 0.00%
Hispanic
16.9%
15.4%
 +9.74%
Asian
4.6%
4.3%
 +6.98%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
2.9%
2%
 +45.00%
Other
0.5%
0.3%
 +66.67%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Connecticut by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 41 -0.24% 39.5 +0.25% 42.4 -0.7%
2020 41.1 +0.24% 39.4 +0.51% 42.7 0%
2019 41 +0.49% 39.2 +0.26% 42.7 +0.23%
2018 40.8 0% 39.1 +0.26% 42.6 +0.47%
2017 40.8 - 39 - 42.4 -

The median age of Connecticut gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 200,652 -3.86% 192,072 -3.34% 192,976 185,686
10 to 19 243,442 -1.07% 232,166 -1.19% 240,808 229,353
20 to 29 241,023 -1.36% 225,276 +0.03% 237,749 225,336
30 to 39 211,105 +5.68% 216,474 +3.73% 223,288 224,623
40 to 49 234,218 -6.49% 247,092 -8.53% 219,303 226,634
50 to 59 265,345 -3.2% 280,068 -3.47% 256,897 270,470
60 to 69 197,023 +10.4% 216,350 +7.09% 218,249 232,070
70+ 161,238 +10.95% 230,934 +4.87% 179,590 242,298

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Connecticut is $83,572.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Connecticut.

  • Under 25
    $42,038.00
  • 25 to 44
    $87,411.00
  • 45 to 64
    $104,155.00
  • 65 and over
    $60,256.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Connecticut, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Connecticut, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Connecticut is currently $120,670.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

14.54% of households in Connecticut are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Connecticut against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    14.59%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    16.11%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    14.93%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    12.11%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    17.64%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    10.08%
  • $200,000 or more
    14.54%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Connecticut is $47,869.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Connecticut by the total population of Connecticut.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Connecticut, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Connecticut to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    20.26%
  • Bachelor's degree
    34.04%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    8.28%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    35.14%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.27%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Connecticut that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Connecticut over the age of 16 is 2,954,661.

Of those people, a total of 66.00% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Connecticut is 61.70%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 198,154 39.70% 16.80%
20 to 24 years 241,370 74.50% 10.60%
25 to 29 years 221,715 85.20% 7.20%
30 to 34 years 224,146 86.20% 5.20%
35 to 44 years 439,098 86.00% 4.80%
45 to 54 years 488,283 84.20% 4.90%
55 to 59 years 269,688 79.30% 4.70%
60 to 64 years 252,028 66.10% 4.70%
65 to 74 years 357,409 32.60% 4.60%
75 years and over 262,770 8.80% 3.60%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Connecticut. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 2,190,047 65.10% 5.20%
Black or African American 309,632 68.00% 8.80%
American Indian and Alaska Native 6,852 66.20% 11.20%
Asian 135,286 68.10% 4.80%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 1,051 64.40% 10.50%
Other 163,346 68.20% 9.40%
Two or more races 148,447 70.80% 9.20%
Hispanic or Latino 442,761 69.30% 8.70%
Not Hispanic or Latino 2,004,249 64.70% 5.00%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Connecticut as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Connecticut is 1,822,995, with median earnings of $50,270.00.

Women in Connecticut earning approximately 72.10% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 1,822,995 $50,270.00
Male 939,729 $57,942.00
Female 883,266 $41,779.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 217,847 $94,959.00
Business and Financial 123,584 $81,518.00
Computer and Mathematical 61,575 $91,283.00
Architecture and Engineering 45,230 $88,255.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 20,787 $73,120.00
Community and Social Service 36,087 $53,237.00
Legal 25,446 $107,808.00
Educational and Library 131,559 $52,977.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 39,540 $49,112.00
Healthcare Practitioners 120,316 $72,903.00
Healthcare Support 65,769 $28,846.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 19,539 $39,006.00
Law Enforcement 14,777 $86,146.00
Food Preparation and Serving 86,199 $17,047.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 66,499 $26,377.00
Personal Care and Service 57,422 $20,339.00
Sales 180,145 $38,794.00
Office and Administrative Support 189,064 $40,366.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 2,983 $24,305.00
Construction and Extraction 83,617 $47,541.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 45,662 $54,682.00
Production 85,241 $42,335.00
Transportation and Material Moving 55,276 $38,127.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 130,091 $107,010.00 87,756 $77,979.00
Business and Financial 58,138 $96,366.00 65,446 $72,437.00
Computer and Mathematical 45,545 $93,724.00 16,030 $84,888.00
Architecture and Engineering 38,646 $91,477.00 6,584 $78,555.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 10,361 $78,165.00 10,426 $70,335.00
Community and Social Service 9,783 $50,182.00 26,304 $53,731.00
Legal 13,302 $155,814.00 12,144 $78,295.00
Educational and Library 35,057 $65,077.00 96,502 $46,026.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 21,170 $56,332.00 18,370 $40,314.00
Healthcare Practitioners 29,080 $90,318.00 91,236 $69,346.00
Healthcare Support 9,756 $33,952.00 56,013 $27,997.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 15,372 $48,388.00 4,167 $18,816.00
Law Enforcement 12,529 $89,569.00 2,248 $62,689.00
Food Preparation and Serving 39,969 $21,112.00 46,230 $14,767.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 42,815 $31,981.00 23,684 $19,903.00
Personal Care and Service 15,431 $22,365.00 41,991 $19,570.00
Sales 92,997 $53,196.00 87,148 $25,713.00
Office and Administrative Support 48,664 $43,627.00 140,400 $39,602.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 1,823 $25,970.00 1,160 $21,680.00
Construction and Extraction 81,299 $48,007.00 2,318 $40,578.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 44,144 $54,709.00 1,518 $53,914.00
Production 60,911 $49,157.00 24,330 $31,451.00
Transportation and Material Moving 46,479 $41,420.00 8,797 $26,334.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 1,397,324 households in Connecticut, with an average household size of 2.5 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 910,006 families in Connecticut with an average family size of 3.09 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 666,526 66,816 176,664 487,318
Average Household Size 3.16 3.12 3.25 1.24
Total Families 666,526 66,816 176,664 0
Average Household Size 3.13 2.77 3.04 0

Poverty

Of the 910,006 families in Connecticut, 6.80% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Connecticut:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 1,527,039 housing units in Connecticut.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 1,397,324 91.51%
Vacant 129,715 8.49%

29.72% of the total 1,527,039 housing units in Connecticut are rental units. This is approximately 453,798 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 925,503 are occupied by the owner - or 60.61% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Connecticut is $1,260.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Connecticut that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    18,023
  • Less than $500
    42,679
  • $500 to $999
    89,749
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    171,156
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    89,480
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    34,346
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    12,323
  • $3,000 or more
    14,065

Property Value

The median value of a property in Connecticut is $286,700.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Connecticut that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    19,747
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    25,603
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    68,932
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    130,158
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    250,981
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    268,183
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    117,839
  • $1,000,000 or more
    44,060

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Connecticut. The chart below shows the number of properties in Connecticut that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    323,631
  • 1940 to 1949
    100,445
  • 1950 to 1959
    224,412
  • 1960 to 1969
    203,726
  • 1970 to 1979
    206,448
  • 1980 to 1989
    191,539
  • 1990 to 1999
    118,124
  • 2000 to 2009
    104,519
  • 2010 to 2013
    53,427
  • 2014 or later
    768

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Connecticut that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    118,174
  • 1 vehicle available
    460,844
  • 2 vehicles available
    520,400
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    297,906

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Connecticut get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Connecticut that commute to work in a particular way.

26.5 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Connecticut.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    39,780
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    148,799
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    233,786
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    253,428
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    247,834
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    113,161
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    200,206
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    51,346
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    61,358
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    111,647
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    89,917
  • 90 or more minutes
    54,160

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Connecticut in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Counties in Connecticut

We have data for 8 counties in Connecticut. Click on a county below to see more information about the demographics of that county, with links to cities and towns within that county.

Zip Codes in Connecticut

If you want to find out more about the population and demographics of specific zip codes in Connecticut, click on the links below.