Utah Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Utah, 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 Utah. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Utah. The estimated population of Utah is 3,231,370 people, with a median age of 31.3.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
3,231,370
+2.54%
+7.93%
2020
3,151,239
+1.76%
-
2019
3,096,848
+1.69%
-
2018
3,045,350
+1.72%
-
2017
2,993,941
 - -

Population of Utah 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
77.3%
79%
 -2.15%
Black/African American
1.1%
1.1%
 0.00%
Native
0.8%
0.9%
 -11.11%
Hispanic
14.4%
13.7%
 +5.11%
Asian
2.3%
2.2%
 +4.55%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.9%
0.9%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
3%
2.1%
 +42.86%
Other
0.3%
0.2%
 +50.00%

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 Utah 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 31.3 +0.64% 30.8 +1.32% 31.8 0%
2020 31.1 +0.97% 30.4 +0.66% 31.8 +0.95%
2019 30.8 +0.33% 30.2 +0.33% 31.5 +0.64%
2018 30.7 +0.66% 30.1 +0.33% 31.3 +0.64%
2017 30.5 - 30 - 31.1 -

The median age of Utah 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 9 262,901 -0.15% 252,010 -0.92% 262,522 249,684
10 to 19 250,169 +8.91% 234,648 +10.16% 273,164 259,366
20 to 29 241,190 +8.26% 232,373 +7.11% 261,720 249,327
30 to 39 223,861 +5.14% 215,923 +3.57% 235,531 223,731
40 to 49 171,334 +16.21% 166,168 +15.63% 200,809 193,691
50 to 59 148,876 +5.32% 152,006 +2.09% 156,891 155,192
60 to 69 117,445 +15.28% 123,936 +12.61% 136,419 140,299
70+ 90,838 +16.51% 110,263 +13.8% 106,787 126,237

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Utah is $79,133.00.

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 Utah.

  • Under 25
    $43,564.00
  • 25 to 44
    $83,643.00
  • 45 to 64
    $99,306.00
  • 65 and over
    $59,518.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Utah, 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 Utah is currently $101,412.00.

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.

8.55% of households in Utah 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 Utah against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    11.33%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    17.75%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    18.14%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    15.13%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    20.32%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    8.79%
  • $200,000 or more
    8.55%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Utah is $33,378.00.

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

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

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Utah 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
    14.11%
  • Bachelor's degree
    38.23%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    12.94%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    31.98%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.75%

Employment

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

The total population of Utah over the age of 16 is 2,391,727.

Of those people, a total of 69.10% 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 Utah is 66.50%.

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 205,093 54.00% 10.70%
20 to 24 years 264,774 82.80% 5.40%
25 to 29 years 246,273 83.60% 3.20%
30 to 34 years 224,216 80.30% 2.80%
35 to 44 years 449,006 82.60% 2.30%
45 to 54 years 337,187 83.20% 2.80%
55 to 59 years 155,436 76.80% 2.10%
60 to 64 years 151,574 62.70% 2.50%
65 to 74 years 220,564 28.00% 2.40%
75 years and over 137,604 7.30% 2.30%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Utah. 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 2,025,080 68.50% 3.20%
Black or African American 27,691 70.40% 5.80%
American Indian and Alaska Native 26,001 61.80% 8.40%
Asian 62,701 71.40% 4.20%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 21,474 71.20% 6.00%
Other 119,455 74.00% 5.30%
Two or more races 109,325 74.80% 5.20%
Hispanic or Latino 314,174 73.90% 4.50%
Not Hispanic or Latino 1,887,734 68.20% 3.20%

Occupations

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

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Utah is 1,590,143, with median earnings of $39,059.00.

Women in Utah earning approximately 58.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 1,590,143 $39,059.00
Male 882,848 $50,088.00
Female 707,295 $29,430.00

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 176,430 $71,842.00
Business and Financial 89,976 $58,627.00
Computer and Mathematical 69,769 $79,127.00
Architecture and Engineering 33,299 $78,917.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 15,818 $55,508.00
Community and Social Service 23,081 $41,762.00
Legal 14,028 $76,525.00
Educational and Library 102,698 $34,946.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 36,344 $31,610.00
Healthcare Practitioners 81,066 $56,207.00
Healthcare Support 39,916 $22,943.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 15,335 $32,105.00
Law Enforcement 10,243 $59,478.00
Food Preparation and Serving 73,229 $13,100.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 52,722 $20,719.00
Personal Care and Service 41,818 $14,685.00
Sales 157,185 $34,639.00
Office and Administrative Support 208,978 $31,211.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 5,102 $27,691.00
Construction and Extraction 87,507 $42,727.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 49,121 $50,916.00
Production 95,022 $35,869.00
Transportation and Material Moving 53,519 $42,029.00

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 116,357 $84,149.00 60,073 $52,686.00
Business and Financial 48,730 $69,245.00 41,246 $49,969.00
Computer and Mathematical 56,404 $83,941.00 13,365 $58,209.00
Architecture and Engineering 28,609 $82,627.00 4,690 $59,429.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 9,895 $57,291.00 5,923 $52,347.00
Community and Social Service 8,772 $47,697.00 14,309 $39,323.00
Legal 7,071 $119,103.00 6,957 $52,587.00
Educational and Library 28,475 $51,540.00 74,223 $27,616.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 17,697 $46,035.00 18,647 $21,280.00
Healthcare Practitioners 27,875 $93,847.00 53,191 $47,423.00
Healthcare Support 7,106 $24,591.00 32,810 $22,372.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 10,632 $41,451.00 4,703 $13,157.00
Law Enforcement 9,067 $61,066.00 1,176 $42,025.00
Food Preparation and Serving 30,909 $14,218.00 42,320 $12,520.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 31,825 $25,842.00 20,897 $14,740.00
Personal Care and Service 8,085 $19,160.00 33,733 $14,058.00
Sales 87,101 $50,060.00 70,084 $21,912.00
Office and Administrative Support 58,860 $34,019.00 150,118 $30,392.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 3,720 $29,514.00 1,382 $22,766.00
Construction and Extraction 85,088 $42,907.00 2,419 $31,000.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 47,212 $51,531.00 1,909 $36,194.00
Production 65,264 $41,602.00 29,758 $27,103.00
Transportation and Material Moving 45,840 $44,692.00 7,679 $28,029.00

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 1,033,651 households in Utah, with an average household size of 3.08 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 763,353 families in Utah with an average family size of 3.58 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 624,878 46,610 91,865 270,298
Average Household Size 3.69 3.47 3.63 1.41
Total Families 624,878 46,610 91,865 0
Average Household Size 3.65 3.04 3.38 0

Poverty

Of the 763,353 families in Utah, 5.90% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Utah:

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 1,133,558 housing units in Utah.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 1,033,651 91.19%
Vacant 99,907 8.81%

25.81% of the total 1,133,558 housing units in Utah are rental units. This is approximately 292,546 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 729,074 are occupied by the owner - or 64.32% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Utah is $1,171.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Utah 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
    12,031
  • Less than $500
    16,563
  • $500 to $999
    87,221
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    112,722
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    54,719
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    15,062
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    3,251
  • $3,000 or more
    3,008

Property Value

The median value of a property in Utah is $339,700.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    23,656
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    12,539
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    27,567
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    55,060
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    176,591
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    283,736
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    129,726
  • $1,000,000 or more
    20,199

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    74,872
  • 1940 to 1949
    35,716
  • 1950 to 1959
    75,551
  • 1960 to 1969
    77,280
  • 1970 to 1979
    173,319
  • 1980 to 1989
    135,042
  • 1990 to 1999
    188,816
  • 2000 to 2009
    216,144
  • 2010 to 2013
    153,764
  • 2014 or later
    3,054

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 Utah that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    40,832
  • 1 vehicle available
    243,973
  • 2 vehicles available
    415,247
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    333,599

Commuting to Work

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

22 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Utah.

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
    52,750
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    172,026
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    229,422
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    244,108
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    218,218
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    93,877
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    154,379
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    34,968
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    41,654
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    76,151
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    46,028
  • 90 or more minutes
    20,371

Summary

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

We have data for 29 counties in Utah. 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 Utah

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