Lancaster County, South Carolina Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Lancaster County, South Carolina, 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 Lancaster County, South Carolina. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Lancaster County, South Carolina. The estimated population of Lancaster County, South Carolina is 94,653 people, with a median age of 42.2.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
94,653
 -0.76% +9.37%
2020
95,378
+3.33%
-
2019
92,308
+3.08%
-
2018
89,546
+3.47%
-
2017
86,544
 - -

Population of Lancaster County, South Carolina 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
69.7%
70.1%
 -0.57%
Black/African American
19.9%
21.7%
 -8.29%
Native
0.1%
0.2%
 -50.00%
Hispanic
5.9%
5%
 +18.00%
Asian
1.6%
1%
 +60.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.1%
0.1%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
2.5%
1.7%
 +47.06%
Other
0%
0.2%
 -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 Lancaster County, South Carolina 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 42.2 -0.71% 40.5 -0.74% 43.9 +0.23%
2020 42.5 +0.95% 40.8 +0.99% 43.8 +0.23%
2019 42.1 +0.24% 40.4 +0.5% 43.7 +0.69%
2018 42 0% 40.2 +0.75% 43.4 -0.23%
2017 42 - 39.9 - 43.5 -

The median age of Lancaster County, South Carolina 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 5,432 +4.65% 5,265 +9.77% 5,682 5,766
10 to 19 5,141 +8.59% 4,757 +5.83% 5,583 5,031
20 to 29 4,872 +5.32% 4,674 +2.3% 5,130 4,780
30 to 39 5,792 +8.13% 5,270 +21.1% 6,272 6,435
40 to 49 5,691 +6.6% 5,849 +4.65% 6,059 6,039
50 to 59 5,595 +7.96% 5,738 +4.05% 6,043 5,962
60 to 69 4,629 +12.53% 6,541 +8.71% 5,231 7,102
70+ 5,176 +18.36% 6,122 +19.19% 6,178 7,360

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Lancaster County, South Carolina is $67,407.00.

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 Lancaster County.

  • Under 25
    $0.00
  • 25 to 44
    $81,292.00
  • 45 to 64
    $82,724.00
  • 65 and over
    $48,148.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County, South Carolina is currently $90,046.00.

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.

7.86% of households in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    19.02%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    17.76%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    17.46%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    15.03%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    16.43%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    6.44%
  • $200,000 or more
    7.86%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Lancaster County is $35,974.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Lancaster 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
    14.43%
  • Bachelor's degree
    32.12%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    9.60%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    39.69%
  • Less than high school diploma
    4.16%

Employment

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

The total population of Lancaster County over the age of 16 is 76,479.

Of those people, a total of 57.20% 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 Lancaster County is 54.10%.

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 3,888 31.60% 12.60%
20 to 24 years 4,633 68.70% 7.30%
25 to 29 years 5,277 83.50% 3.90%
30 to 34 years 5,967 83.20% 12.50%
35 to 44 years 12,552 80.20% 3.60%
45 to 54 years 12,098 82.50% 4.90%
55 to 59 years 6,193 71.30% 0.80%
60 to 64 years 6,046 46.40% 1.10%
65 to 74 years 12,178 18.60% 1.20%
75 years and over 7,647 5.90% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Lancaster 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 57,087 56.10% 4.90%
Black or African American 15,350 57.50% 6.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 95 69.50% 0.00%
Asian 1,137 70.60% 3.60%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 107 0.00% 0.00%
Other 908 84.50% 0.00%
Two or more races 1,795 70.40% 0.70%
Hispanic or Latino 3,762 68.20% 3.50%
Not Hispanic or Latino 55,011 56.00% 4.80%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Lancaster 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 Lancaster County is 41,404, with median earnings of $42,461.00.

Women in Lancaster County, South Carolina earning approximately 72.90% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 41,404 $42,461.00
Male 21,733 $47,685.00
Female 19,671 $34,777.00

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 4,179 $82,933.00
Business and Financial 2,512 $78,885.00
Computer and Mathematical 1,500 $84,060.00
Architecture and Engineering 647 $98,843.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 187 $4,838.00
Community and Social Service 583 $47,846.00
Legal 323 $44,187.00
Educational and Library 2,813 $39,881.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 513 $55,379.00
Healthcare Practitioners 2,563 $54,899.00
Healthcare Support 750 $21,656.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 311 $26,599.00
Law Enforcement 192 $42,674.00
Food Preparation and Serving 1,465 $14,380.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 1,743 $28,702.00
Personal Care and Service 861 $15,625.00
Sales 3,564 $36,225.00
Office and Administrative Support 5,651 $34,453.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 75 $22,981.00
Construction and Extraction 1,721 $36,528.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,894 $49,722.00
Production 4,212 $37,739.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,406 $41,944.00

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 2,564 $105,682.00 1,615 $80,059.00
Business and Financial 1,100 $89,853.00 1,412 $78,355.00
Computer and Mathematical 1,042 $97,342.00 458 $82,643.00
Architecture and Engineering 611 $99,491.00 36 $58,409.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 169 $4,613.00 18 $49,375.00
Community and Social Service 252 $62,984.00 331 $36,844.00
Legal 91 $70,078.00 232 $43,611.00
Educational and Library 632 $51,094.00 2,181 $38,266.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 345 $102,074.00 168 $18,187.00
Healthcare Practitioners 263 $92,012.00 2,300 $52,874.00
Healthcare Support 62 $0.00 688 $22,574.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 252 $52,700.00 59 $11,331.00
Law Enforcement 169 $42,617.00 23 $42,841.00
Food Preparation and Serving 457 $14,901.00 1,008 $13,314.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 1,129 $34,745.00 614 $15,259.00
Personal Care and Service 327 $11,188.00 534 $18,750.00
Sales 1,964 $65,647.00 1,600 $22,141.00
Office and Administrative Support 1,206 $36,100.00 4,445 $34,255.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 55 $23,622.00 20 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 1,704 $37,315.00 17 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 1,836 $50,687.00 58 $19,605.00
Production 2,955 $40,085.00 1,257 $31,981.00
Transportation and Material Moving 1,261 $42,095.00 145 $34,226.00

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 36,597 households in Lancaster County, with an average household size of 2.54 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 26,296 families in Lancaster County with an average family size of 3.01 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 20,506 1,341 4,449 10,301
Average Household Size 2.99 2.77 3.51 1.2
Total Families 20,506 1,341 4,449 0
Average Household Size 2.96 2.6 3.33 0

Poverty

Of the 26,296 families in Lancaster County, 9.00% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Lancaster 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 40,163 housing units in Lancaster County, South Carolina.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 36,597 91.12%
Vacant 3,566 8.88%

16.49% of the total 40,163 housing units in Lancaster County are rental units. This is approximately 6,624 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 29,205 are occupied by the owner - or 72.72% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Lancaster County is $821.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Lancaster 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
    768
  • Less than $500
    613
  • $500 to $999
    4,165
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    1,267
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    545
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    15
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    19
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Lancaster County is $225,400.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    1,815
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    3,705
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    3,990
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    3,699
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    5,669
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    8,266
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    2,009
  • $1,000,000 or more
    52

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    1,562
  • 1940 to 1949
    1,440
  • 1950 to 1959
    3,013
  • 1960 to 1969
    2,751
  • 1970 to 1979
    4,762
  • 1980 to 1989
    3,636
  • 1990 to 1999
    5,085
  • 2000 to 2009
    8,982
  • 2010 to 2013
    8,714
  • 2014 or later
    218

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 Lancaster County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    1,464
  • 1 vehicle available
    11,217
  • 2 vehicles available
    15,423
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    8,493

Commuting to Work

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

30.7 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Lancaster 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
    533
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    3,054
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    4,589
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    3,544
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    4,146
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    2,269
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    5,544
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    1,447
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    1,909
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    5,119
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    3,610
  • 90 or more minutes
    859

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Lancaster County, South Carolina 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 Lancaster County, South Carolina

We have data for 11 places in Lancaster County, South Carolina. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.