Carbon County, Pennsylvania Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Carbon County, Pennsylvania, 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 Carbon County, Pennsylvania. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. The estimated population of Carbon County, Pennsylvania is 64,792 people, with a median age of 46.2.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
64,792
+1.29%
+1.26%
2020
63,964
+0.12%
-
2019
63,887
-0.07% -
2018
63,931
-0.09% -
2017
63,987
- -

Population of Carbon County, Pennsylvania 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
90.2%
92.4%
-2.38%
Black/African American
1.6%
1.7%
-5.88%
Native
0.1%
0%
0.00%
Hispanic
5.6%
4.3%
+30.23%
Asian
0.5%
0.5%
0.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0%
0.00%
Two Or More Races
1.9%
1%
+90.00%
Other
0%
0.1%
-100.00%

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 Carbon County, Pennsylvania 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 46.2 -0.86% 45.4 +0.44% 47.3 -1.05%
2020 46.6 +0.87% 45.2 +0.22% 47.8 +1.06%
2019 46.2 +0.43% 45.1 +0.89% 47.3 +0.42%
2018 46 +0.66% 44.7 +0.9% 47.1 +0.64%
2017 45.7 - 44.3 - 46.8 -

The median age of Carbon County, Pennsylvania 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 3,474 -9.95% 3,031 -6.6% 3,140 2,831
10 to 19 3,591 +4.61% 3,710 +5.95% 3,754 3,933
20 to 29 3,346 -0.24% 3,274 -1.18% 3,338 3,232
30 to 39 3,824 -1.16% 3,157 +7.99% 3,778 3,410
40 to 49 4,188 -0.58% 4,588 -12.33% 4,161 4,038
50 to 59 5,121 -2.62% 5,444 -6.38% 4,978 5,103
60 to 69 4,468 +9.6% 4,157 +18.58% 4,912 4,966
70+ 3,704 +14.23% 4,910 +1.05% 4,258 4,960

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Carbon County, Pennsylvania is $59,289.00.

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 Carbon County.

  • Under 25
    $31,806.00
  • 25 to 44
    $67,531.00
  • 45 to 64
    $78,635.00
  • 65 and over
    $40,398.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Carbon 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 Carbon County, Pennsylvania is currently $75,375.00.

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.

3.35% of households in Carbon 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 Carbon County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    19.76%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    23.15%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    18.30%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    13.63%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    16.01%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    5.81%
  • $200,000 or more
    3.35%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Carbon County is $31,644.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Carbon 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
    7.23%
  • Bachelor's degree
    17.78%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    9.09%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    63.31%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.58%

Employment

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

The total population of Carbon County over the age of 16 is 53,860.

Of those people, a total of 61.10% 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 Carbon County is 57.00%.

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 2,726 48.80% 16.60%
20 to 24 years 3,268 83.00% 14.80%
25 to 29 years 3,302 88.10% 6.10%
30 to 34 years 3,719 79.70% 9.90%
35 to 44 years 7,434 81.20% 5.20%
45 to 54 years 9,357 85.90% 6.50%
55 to 59 years 4,958 75.50% 3.20%
60 to 64 years 5,560 58.90% 3.00%
65 to 74 years 8,104 19.70% 2.10%
75 years and over 5,432 5.90% 3.10%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Carbon 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 50,781 60.90% 6.40%
Black or African American 897 55.70% 2.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 77 96.10% 0.00%
Asian 342 56.10% 24.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 11 100.00% 0.00%
Other 296 64.90% 0.00%
Two or more races 1,456 70.90% 14.40%
Hispanic or Latino 2,495 70.70% 9.90%
Not Hispanic or Latino 49,335 60.50% 6.20%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Carbon 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 Carbon County is 30,691, with median earnings of $39,065.00.

Women in Carbon County, Pennsylvania earning approximately 71.90% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 30,691 $39,065.00
Male 16,215 $44,721.00
Female 14,476 $32,169.00

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 2,087 $60,736.00
Business and Financial 699 $53,972.00
Computer and Mathematical 599 $64,696.00
Architecture and Engineering 370 $73,611.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 361 $122,306.00
Community and Social Service 526 $39,073.00
Legal 139 $33,750.00
Educational and Library 1,591 $31,778.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 516 $22,344.00
Healthcare Practitioners 2,135 $56,941.00
Healthcare Support 1,484 $27,795.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 291 $35,017.00
Law Enforcement 264 $78,934.00
Food Preparation and Serving 1,538 $11,123.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 1,209 $22,698.00
Personal Care and Service 738 $14,700.00
Sales 2,486 $28,038.00
Office and Administrative Support 3,841 $36,764.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 269 $60,130.00
Construction and Extraction 2,075 $49,727.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,463 $45,142.00
Production 2,700 $43,519.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,801 $36,786.00

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 1,027 $69,960.00 1,060 $53,697.00
Business and Financial 329 $62,585.00 370 $49,643.00
Computer and Mathematical 430 $65,461.00 169 $62,946.00
Architecture and Engineering 344 $73,492.00 26 $222,679.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 262 $153,139.00 99 $53,464.00
Community and Social Service 274 $38,792.00 252 $40,484.00
Legal 55 $160,625.00 84 $32,845.00
Educational and Library 346 $52,381.00 1,245 $30,194.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 314 $42,739.00 202 $8,992.00
Healthcare Practitioners 279 $48,860.00 1,856 $58,636.00
Healthcare Support 165 $23,807.00 1,319 $27,942.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 178 $26,908.00 113 $35,579.00
Law Enforcement 263 $78,952.00 1 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 410 $15,110.00 1,128 $10,192.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 797 $30,321.00 412 $16,067.00
Personal Care and Service 258 $25,000.00 480 $11,250.00
Sales 1,203 $37,827.00 1,283 $19,543.00
Office and Administrative Support 908 $45,362.00 2,933 $36,532.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 252 $60,573.00 17 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 2,058 $49,818.00 17 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,436 $44,954.00 27 $0.00
Production 2,148 $44,512.00 552 $31,525.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,407 $41,024.00 394 $17,647.00

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 26,312 households in Carbon County, with an average household size of 2.43 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 16,661 families in Carbon County with an average family size of 2.97 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 12,162 1,729 2,770 9,651
Average Household Size 3 3.25 3.34 1.3
Total Families 12,162 1,729 2,770 0
Average Household Size 2.98 2.8 3.06 0

Poverty

Of the 16,661 families in Carbon County, 8.60% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Carbon 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 34,210 housing units in Carbon County, Pennsylvania.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 26,312 76.91%
Vacant 7,898 23.09%

18.73% of the total 34,210 housing units in Carbon County are rental units. This is approximately 6,408 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 19,480 are occupied by the owner - or 56.94% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Carbon County is $842.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Carbon 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
    424
  • Less than $500
    984
  • $500 to $999
    3,595
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    1,534
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    282
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    13
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Carbon County is $158,800.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    1,816
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    3,634
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    3,536
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3,945
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    4,485
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    1,666
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    371
  • $1,000,000 or more
    27

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    9,640
  • 1940 to 1949
    1,856
  • 1950 to 1959
    2,320
  • 1960 to 1969
    2,398
  • 1970 to 1979
    3,734
  • 1980 to 1989
    5,678
  • 1990 to 1999
    3,617
  • 2000 to 2009
    4,069
  • 2010 to 2013
    898
  • 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 Carbon County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    1,596
  • 1 vehicle available
    8,328
  • 2 vehicles available
    9,409
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    6,979

Commuting to Work

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

31.1 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Carbon 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
    1,237
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    2,824
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    2,373
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    2,732
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    3,407
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    1,358
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    2,351
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    1,375
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    1,732
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    5,119
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    2,443
  • 90 or more minutes
    894

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Carbon County, Pennsylvania 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 Carbon County, Pennsylvania

We have data for 17 places in Carbon County, Pennsylvania. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.