District of Columbia Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for District of Columbia, 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 District of Columbia. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in District of Columbia. The estimated population of District of Columbia is 683,154 people, with a median age of 34.3.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
683,154
 -2.68% +1.60%
2020
701,974
+1.34%
-
2019
692,683
+1.2%
-
2018
684,498
+1.8%
-
2017
672,391
 - -

Population of District of Columbia 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
36.7%
36%
 +1.94%
Black/African American
43.9%
46.9%
 -6.40%
Native
0.1%
0.2%
 -50.00%
Hispanic
11.3%
10.7%
 +5.61%
Asian
4%
3.7%
 +8.11%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
3.5%
2.2%
 +59.09%
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 District of Columbia 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 34.3 +0.59% 34.3 +0.88% 34.4 +0.58%
2020 34.1 +0.29% 34 +0.29% 34.2 0%
2019 34 +0.29% 33.9 +0.3% 34.2 +0.29%
2018 33.9 0% 33.8 0% 34.1 0%
2017 33.9 - 33.8 - 34.1 -

The median age of District of Columbia 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 39,104 +0.45% 37,869 +2.45% 39,225 38,802
10 to 19 30,195 +10.51% 32,507 +6.41% 33,483 34,607
20 to 29 62,811 -8.09% 73,687 -6.51% 57,747 68,921
30 to 39 61,961 +8.9% 66,114 +8.28% 67,553 71,655
40 to 49 40,463 +3.11% 39,941 +4.98% 41,725 41,953
50 to 59 37,032 -1.4% 37,681 -8.53% 36,505 34,560
60 to 69 25,877 +3.33% 33,312 +0.48% 26,739 33,404
70+ 21,603 +4.23% 32,234 +4.79% 22,513 33,762

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of District of Columbia is $93,547.00.

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 District of Columbia.

  • Under 25
    $46,853.00
  • 25 to 44
    $109,135.00
  • 45 to 64
    $97,226.00
  • 65 and over
    $64,232.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in District of Columbia, 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 District of Columbia is currently $138,421.00.

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.

21.08% of households in District of Columbia 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 District of Columbia against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    16.98%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    12.31%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    12.24%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    11.29%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    15.89%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    10.21%
  • $200,000 or more
    21.08%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in District of Columbia is $63,793.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in District of Columbia 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
    33.72%
  • Bachelor's degree
    39.22%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    5.17%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    20.04%
  • Less than high school diploma
    1.85%

Employment

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

The total population of District of Columbia over the age of 16 is 568,405.

Of those people, a total of 71.40% 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 District of Columbia is 65.80%.

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 31,368 28.90% 26.30%
20 to 24 years 49,311 69.00% 14.40%
25 to 29 years 77,357 87.20% 6.30%
30 to 34 years 78,357 91.00% 5.00%
35 to 44 years 106,798 88.70% 6.00%
45 to 54 years 73,601 83.20% 6.30%
55 to 59 years 35,195 73.20% 6.20%
60 to 64 years 33,219 62.40% 6.70%
65 to 74 years 48,972 35.90% 4.90%
75 years and over 34,227 11.00% 4.60%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in District of Columbia. 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 246,091 80.60% 2.60%
Black or African American 244,144 60.90% 13.80%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1,805 57.90% 7.20%
Asian 25,721 74.50% 3.10%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 359 81.60% 6.20%
Other 22,354 77.40% 6.60%
Two or more races 27,931 74.70% 5.20%
Hispanic or Latino 57,230 77.60% 4.80%
Not Hispanic or Latino 225,118 80.80% 2.50%

Occupations

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

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in District of Columbia is 373,967, with median earnings of $73,066.00.

Women in District of Columbia earning approximately 85.00% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 373,967 $73,066.00
Male 179,949 $79,279.00
Female 194,018 $67,414.00

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 63,582 $108,597.00
Business and Financial 45,313 $90,553.00
Computer and Mathematical 26,469 $95,424.00
Architecture and Engineering 5,677 $96,498.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 14,112 $99,606.00
Community and Social Service 8,429 $61,524.00
Legal 30,740 $146,898.00
Educational and Library 23,149 $56,462.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 21,786 $72,979.00
Healthcare Practitioners 13,509 $82,061.00
Healthcare Support 5,263 $31,881.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 6,670 $37,945.00
Law Enforcement 2,448 $91,650.00
Food Preparation and Serving 16,210 $24,574.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 9,255 $31,855.00
Personal Care and Service 8,668 $19,074.00
Sales 20,489 $43,626.00
Office and Administrative Support 30,414 $48,191.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 117 $23,454.00
Construction and Extraction 6,001 $39,303.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 2,735 $46,014.00
Production 2,110 $48,491.00
Transportation and Material Moving 7,003 $34,228.00

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 31,661 $121,946.00 31,921 $97,480.00
Business and Financial 19,400 $98,460.00 25,913 $86,853.00
Computer and Mathematical 16,132 $98,538.00 10,337 $89,018.00
Architecture and Engineering 4,153 $103,828.00 1,524 $86,810.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 6,894 $109,250.00 7,218 $89,684.00
Community and Social Service 2,947 $66,466.00 5,482 $59,094.00
Legal 14,470 $158,626.00 16,270 $134,093.00
Educational and Library 7,881 $67,004.00 15,268 $51,970.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 10,356 $78,708.00 11,430 $67,756.00
Healthcare Practitioners 4,805 $101,796.00 8,704 $75,412.00
Healthcare Support 1,368 $31,563.00 3,895 $32,128.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 2,949 $40,944.00 3,721 $37,299.00
Law Enforcement 1,774 $95,205.00 674 $88,175.00
Food Preparation and Serving 8,536 $26,635.00 7,674 $20,365.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 4,708 $35,366.00 4,547 $28,275.00
Personal Care and Service 2,118 $22,056.00 6,550 $17,145.00
Sales 10,838 $47,466.00 9,651 $37,911.00
Office and Administrative Support 10,537 $51,372.00 19,877 $47,005.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 9 $0.00 108 $23,750.00
Construction and Extraction 5,821 $39,733.00 180 $9,271.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 2,464 $45,610.00 271 $53,880.00
Production 1,575 $51,396.00 535 $31,941.00
Transportation and Material Moving 5,827 $35,452.00 1,176 $30,944.00

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 310,104 households in District of Columbia, with an average household size of 2.08 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 131,196 families in District of Columbia with an average family size of 3.07 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 79,950 10,956 40,290 178,908
Average Household Size 3.01 2.88 3.53 1.29
Total Families 79,950 10,956 40,290 0
Average Household Size 2.96 2.64 3.4 0

Poverty

Of the 131,196 families in District of Columbia, 11.60% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in District of Columbia:

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 344,306 housing units in District of Columbia.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 310,104 90.07%
Vacant 34,202 9.93%

51.57% of the total 344,306 housing units in District of Columbia are rental units. This is approximately 177,555 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 128,720 are occupied by the owner - or 37.39% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in District of Columbia is $1,681.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in District of Columbia 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
    3,829
  • Less than $500
    16,392
  • $500 to $999
    18,428
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    39,547
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    39,794
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    26,911
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    16,339
  • $3,000 or more
    20,144

Property Value

The median value of a property in District of Columbia is $635,900.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    1,526
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    818
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    1,298
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    1,523
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    9,612
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    32,263
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    54,156
  • $1,000,000 or more
    27,524

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    113,235
  • 1940 to 1949
    37,350
  • 1950 to 1959
    41,643
  • 1960 to 1969
    38,349
  • 1970 to 1979
    23,368
  • 1980 to 1989
    16,104
  • 1990 to 1999
    10,832
  • 2000 to 2009
    27,352
  • 2010 to 2013
    35,399
  • 2014 or later
    674

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 District of Columbia that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    110,823
  • 1 vehicle available
    140,081
  • 2 vehicles available
    47,341
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    11,859

Commuting to Work

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

30.4 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in District of Columbia.

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
    3,626
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    12,082
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    22,069
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    34,554
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    43,447
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    22,820
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    60,341
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    16,345
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    21,842
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    34,521
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    19,500
  • 90 or more minutes
    6,300

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for District of Columbia 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 District of Columbia

We have data for 1 counties in District of Columbia. 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 District of Columbia

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