Stephenson County, Illinois Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Stephenson County, Illinois, 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 Stephenson County, Illinois. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Stephenson County, Illinois. The estimated population of Stephenson County, Illinois is 44,817 people, with a median age of 45.6.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
44,817
+0.3%
-2.23%
2020
44,683
 -0.91% -
2019
45,093
 -0.75% -
2018
45,433
 -0.89% -
2017
45,839
 - -

Population of Stephenson County, Illinois 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
81.4%
83.3%
 -2.28%
Black/African American
9.4%
9.5%
 -1.05%
Native
0.2%
0.1%
 +100.00%
Hispanic
4.3%
3.6%
 +19.44%
Asian
0.8%
0.8%
 0.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
3.7%
2.5%
 +48.00%
Other
0.1%
0.1%
 0.00%

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 Stephenson County, Illinois 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 45.6 +0.22% 43.8 -0.45% 47.7 +1.06%
2020 45.5 +0.44% 44 +0.23% 47.2 +0.64%
2019 45.3 +0.44% 43.9 -0.68% 46.9 +0.64%
2018 45.1 +0.89% 44.2 +1.14% 46.6 +1.53%
2017 44.7 - 43.7 - 45.9 -

The median age of Stephenson County, Illinois 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 2,681 -3.37% 2,765 -11.73% 2,584 2,447
10 to 19 2,797 +2.63% 2,598 +2.45% 2,850 2,654
20 to 29 2,532 -2.16% 2,500 -8.65% 2,477 2,288
30 to 39 2,365 -18.08% 2,377 -3.93% 1,965 2,277
40 to 49 2,586 +6% 2,834 -13.79% 2,743 2,461
50 to 59 3,040 +4.84% 3,332 -13.62% 3,185 2,878
60 to 69 3,346 -4.18% 3,459 +9.69% 3,205 3,779
70+ 2,836 +4.58% 3,791 +7.08% 2,966 4,058

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Stephenson County, Illinois is $53,806.00.

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 Stephenson County.

  • Under 25
    $22,325.00
  • 25 to 44
    $58,612.00
  • 45 to 64
    $63,085.00
  • 65 and over
    $47,936.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Stephenson County, 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 Stephenson County, Illinois is currently $69,204.00.

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.

3.13% of households in Stephenson County 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 Stephenson County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    22.52%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    23.86%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    19.70%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    10.92%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    15.79%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    4.08%
  • $200,000 or more
    3.13%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Stephenson County is $30,493.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Stephenson County 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
    9.62%
  • Bachelor's degree
    23.44%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    17.85%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    47.04%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.05%

Employment

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

The total population of Stephenson County over the age of 16 is 36,335.

Of those people, a total of 60.50% 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 Stephenson County is 56.00%.

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 2,053 47.20% 23.00%
20 to 24 years 2,461 83.00% 14.60%
25 to 29 years 2,304 73.60% 10.30%
30 to 34 years 2,175 84.60% 7.40%
35 to 44 years 4,638 87.10% 5.00%
45 to 54 years 5,730 82.90% 6.90%
55 to 59 years 2,966 80.00% 2.70%
60 to 64 years 3,646 63.00% 1.80%
65 to 74 years 5,847 28.90% 1.90%
75 years and over 4,515 6.40% 2.40%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Stephenson County. 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 31,544 60.50% 5.50%
Black or African American 3,166 56.70% 21.30%
American Indian and Alaska Native 69 44.90% 0.00%
Asian 250 74.80% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 164 58.50% 0.00%
Two or more races 1,142 70.30% 9.60%
Hispanic or Latino 1,231 72.30% 5.10%
Not Hispanic or Latino 30,870 60.30% 5.60%

Occupations

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

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Stephenson County is 20,351, with median earnings of $34,608.00.

Women in Stephenson County, Illinois earning approximately 64.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 20,351 $34,608.00
Male 10,465 $43,270.00
Female 9,886 $28,044.00

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 2,104 $53,364.00
Business and Financial 708 $58,514.00
Computer and Mathematical 184 $77,800.00
Architecture and Engineering 302 $71,071.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 71 $43,750.00
Community and Social Service 305 $43,393.00
Legal 134 $126,250.00
Educational and Library 1,365 $40,451.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 109 $29,120.00
Healthcare Practitioners 1,244 $51,333.00
Healthcare Support 670 $21,207.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 98 $12,407.00
Law Enforcement 69 $61,375.00
Food Preparation and Serving 775 $16,091.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 1,114 $25,405.00
Personal Care and Service 555 $21,357.00
Sales 1,699 $22,695.00
Office and Administrative Support 2,574 $28,717.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 336 $28,036.00
Construction and Extraction 991 $53,839.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 889 $57,171.00
Production 2,510 $38,286.00
Transportation and Material Moving 759 $49,911.00

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 1,248 $64,167.00 856 $34,690.00
Business and Financial 239 $64,176.00 469 $47,574.00
Computer and Mathematical 113 $82,639.00 71 $77,750.00
Architecture and Engineering 264 $75,000.00 38 $55,385.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 64 $43,333.00 7 $0.00
Community and Social Service 100 $39,762.00 205 $43,631.00
Legal 117 $133,681.00 17 $34,750.00
Educational and Library 423 $53,250.00 942 $36,500.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 33 $28,264.00 76 $31,071.00
Healthcare Practitioners 213 $69,940.00 1,031 $46,319.00
Healthcare Support 63 $24,792.00 607 $20,896.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 38 $20,833.00 60 $11,944.00
Law Enforcement 62 $61,750.00 7 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 342 $13,145.00 433 $20,203.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 832 $31,159.00 282 $22,016.00
Personal Care and Service 102 $24,583.00 453 $21,052.00
Sales 676 $30,597.00 1,023 $21,048.00
Office and Administrative Support 425 $42,292.00 2,149 $27,127.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 270 $41,563.00 66 $16,250.00
Construction and Extraction 969 $53,661.00 22 $61,500.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 855 $58,075.00 34 $0.00
Production 1,781 $43,148.00 729 $27,083.00
Transportation and Material Moving 707 $50,313.00 52 $33,750.00

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 19,253 households in Stephenson County, with an average household size of 2.29 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 12,380 families in Stephenson County with an average family size of 2.81 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 9,257 866 2,257 6,873
Average Household Size 2.83 3.07 3.2 1.16
Total Families 9,257 866 2,257 0
Average Household Size 2.81 2.35 2.96 0

Poverty

Of the 12,380 families in Stephenson County, 11.10% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Stephenson County:

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 21,449 housing units in Stephenson County, Illinois.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 19,253 89.76%
Vacant 2,196 10.24%

24.11% of the total 21,449 housing units in Stephenson County are rental units. This is approximately 5,171 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 13,624 are occupied by the owner - or 63.52% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Stephenson County is $696.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Stephenson County 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
    458
  • Less than $500
    1,106
  • $500 to $999
    3,357
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    441
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    148
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    47
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    72

Property Value

The median value of a property in Stephenson County is $103,900.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    2,235
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    4,365
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    2,728
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    2,033
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    1,316
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    684
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    135
  • $1,000,000 or more
    128

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    7,411
  • 1940 to 1949
    1,115
  • 1950 to 1959
    2,378
  • 1960 to 1969
    2,197
  • 1970 to 1979
    2,834
  • 1980 to 1989
    1,915
  • 1990 to 1999
    2,210
  • 2000 to 2009
    1,062
  • 2010 to 2013
    327
  • 2014 or later
    0

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 Stephenson County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    1,801
  • 1 vehicle available
    6,874
  • 2 vehicles available
    6,779
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    3,799

Commuting to Work

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

22.4 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Stephenson County.

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
    1,280
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    3,513
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    3,591
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    2,536
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    2,098
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    882
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    1,301
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    556
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    497
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    1,178
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    757
  • 90 or more minutes
    567

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Stephenson County, Illinois 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.

Places in Stephenson County, Illinois

We have data for 26 places in Stephenson County, Illinois. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.