Demographics of Florida

Florida is the third-most populous state in the United States. Its residents include people from a wide variety of ethnic, racial, national and religious backgrounds. The state has attracted immigrants, particularly from Latin America.^[8] Florida's majority ethnic group are European Americans, with approximately 65% of the population identifying as White. National ethnic communities in the state include Cubans, who migrated en masse following the revolution in the mid 20th century. They have been joined by other immigrants from Latin America, and Spanish is spoken by more than 20% of the state's population, with high usage especially in the Miami-Dade County area.

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1830	34,730		—
1840	54,477		56.9%
1850	87,445		60.5%
1860	140,424		60.6%
1870	187,748		33.7%
1880	269,493		43.5%
1890	391,422		45.2%
1900	528,542		35.0%
1910	752,619		42.4%
1920	968,470		28.7%
1930	1,468,211		51.6%
1940	1,897,414		29.2%
1950	2,771,305		46.1%
1960	4,951,560		78.7%
1970	6,791,418		37.2%
1980	9,746,324		43.5%
1990	12,937,926		32.7%
2000	15,982,378		23.5%
2010	18,801,310		17.6%
2020	21,538,187		14.6%
2024 (est.)	23,372,215		8.5%
U.S. Decennial Census 1830–1970[1] 1980[2] 1990[3] 2000[4] 2010[5] 2020[6] 2024[7]

Between the 2010 and 2020 census, the population of the state overall did increase. 50 counties in Florida would experience population growth while 17 counties saw their populations decline. Most of Florida's population lives in urban areas as in the 2020 census, close to 97% of people in Florida resided in metropolitan areas.^[9] Florida in the 2022 US Census estimate was the fastest growing state in terms of population and the first time it was the fastest growing since 1957.^[10] In the 2020 census Florida had a population density of 401.4 people per square mile.^[11]

Population

Florida's metropolitan areas and major cities

Florida's population density per square mile

Florida ancestry map

With a population getting close to 23 million people according to the 2023 US Census estimates,^[7][12] Florida is the most populous state in the Southeastern United States, and the second-most populous state in the South behind Texas. Within the United States, it contains the highest percentage of people over 65 (17.3%), and the 8th fewest people under 18 (21.9%).^{[13][better source needed]} Florida's population growth primarily comes from those moving to the state. The rate of natural change of births and deaths is "typically flat" and actually had negative natural population change in 2020.^[12] The 2022 US Census estimate found the largest age group moving to Florida were those from 60 and 69 years old with the second largest age group being those from 50 to 59 years old.^[14]

Net domestic migration

Year[15]	In-migrants	Out-migrants	Net migration
2010	482,889	427,853	55,036
2011	498,597	437,202	61,395
2012	537,148	428,325	108,823
2013	529,406	423,995	105,411
2014	546,501	437,516	108,985
2015	584,938	445,320	139,618
2016	605,018	433,452	171,566
2017	566,476	447,586	118,890
2018	587,261	470,977	116,284
2019	601,611	457,301	144,310
2020	NA	NA	NA
2021	674,740	469,577	205,163
2022	738,969	489,905	249,064
2023	636,933	510,925	126,008

Population by county by year

The population for each respective year comes from the decennial United States Census results.

County	2020[9]	2010[9]	2000[9]
Alachua	278,468	247,336	217,955
Baker	28,259	27,115	22,259
Bay	175,216	168,852	148,217
Bradford	28,303	28,520	26,088
Brevard	606,612	543,376	476,230
Broward	1,944,375	1,748,066	1,623,018
Calhoun	13,648	14,625	13,017
Charlotte	186,847	159,978	141,627
Citrus	153,843	141,236	118,085
Clay	218,245	190,865	140,814
Collier	375,752	321,520	251,377
Columbia	69,698	67,531	56,513
DeSoto	33,976	34,862	32,209
Dixie	16,759	16,422	13,827
Duval	995,567	864,263	778,879
Escambia	321,905	297,619	294,410
Flagler	115,378	95,696	49,832
Franklin	12,451	11,549	9,829
Gadsden	43,826	46,389	45,087
Gilchrist	17,864	16,939	14,437
Glades	12,126	12,884	10,576
Gulf	14,192	15,863	14,560
Hamilton	14,004	14,799	13,327
Hardee	25,327	27,731	26,938
Hendry	39,619	39,140	36,210
Hernando	194,515	172,778	130,802
Highlands	101,235	98,786	87,366
Hillsborough	1,459,762	1,229,226	998,948
Holmes	19,653	19,927	18,564
Indian River	159,788	138,028	112,947
Jackson	47,319	49,746	46,755
Jefferson	14,510	14,761	12,902
Lafayette	8,226	8,870	7,022
Lake	383,956	297,047	210,527
Lee	760,822	618,754	440,888
Leon	292,198	275,487	239,452
Levy	42,915	40,801	34,450
Liberty	7,974	8,365	7,021
Madison	17,968	19,224	18,733
Manatee	399,710	322,833	264,002
Marion	375,908	331,303	258,916
Martin	158,431	146,318	126,731
Miami-Dade (Dade)	2,701,767	2,496,457	2,253,779
Monroe	82,874	73,090	79,589
Nassau	90,352	73,314	57,663
Okaloosa	211,668	180,822	170,498
Okeechobee	39,644	39,996	35,910
Orange	1,429,908	1,145,956	896,344
Osceola	388,656	268,685	172,493
Palm Beach	1,492,191	1,320,134	1,131,191
Pasco	561,891	464,697	344,768
Pinellas	959,107	916,542	921,495
Polk	725,046	602,095	483,924
Putnam	73,321	74,364	70,423
St. Johns	273,425	190,039	123,135
St. Lucie	329,226	277,789	192,695
Santa Rosa	188,000	151,372	117,743
Sarasota	434,006	379,448	325,961
Seminole	470,856	422,718	365,199
Sumter	129,752	93,420	53,345
Suwannee	43,474	41,551	34,844
Taylor	21,796	22,570	19,256
Union	16,147	15,535	13,442
Volusia	553,543	494,593	443,343
Wakulla	33,764	30,776	22,863
Walton	75,305	55,043	40,601
Washington	25,318	24,896	20,973
Total	21,538,187	18,801,332	15,982,824

Housing

Occupancy rates in Florida

The 2020 Census reported there were 9,865,350 housing units in Florida. Most housing units (86.5%) were reported as being occupied and 13.5% were reported as being vacant.^[16]

Of those which were occupied, 65.1% were occupied by owners while 34.9% by renters.^[16]

For homes which were vacant the most common category was "For seasonal, recreational, or occasional use" which made up 6.8% of all homes categorized as vacant. Most homes which were for sale or for rent were still occupied.^[16]

Housing in Florida by occupancy classification according to the 2010 and 2020 US Censuses

Year	Occupied		Vacant												Total
			For rent		Rented, not occupied		For sale only		Sold, not occupied		For seasonal, recreational, or occasional use		All other vacants
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
2020[16]	8,529,067	86.5%	301,255	3.1%	32,162	0.3%	116,289	1.2%	43,437	0.4%	667,183	6.8%	175,957	1.8%	9,865,350	100.0%
2010[17][18]	7,420,802	82.5%	371,626	4.1%	15,438	0.2%	198,232	2.2%	31,911	0.4%	657,070	7.3%	294,501	3.3%	8,989,580	100%

Households in Florida

There were 8,529,067 households in Florida in the 2020 Census and they were most commonly married couples which made up 45.6% of households in Florida.^[16]

Race and ethnicity

See also: African Americans in Florida, Hispanics and Latinos in Florida, and Indigenous peoples of Florida

2020 census

According to the 2020 census, the racial distributions was as follows; 51.5% Non-Hispanic White, 26.6% of the population are Hispanics or Latino (of any race), 14.5% African American, 0.4% Native American, 3.0% Asian, 0.6% 'some other race,' and 3.7% multiracial.

Map of counties in Florida by racial plurality, per the 2020 US Census

Non-Hispanic White   30–40%   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%

Hispanic or Latino   50–60%   60–70%

Black or African American   50–60%

2010 census

According to the 2010 census, the racial distributions was as follows; 57.9% Non-Hispanic White, 22.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino (of any race), 15.2% African American (includes Afro-Caribbeans), 2.4% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 0.3% "some other race," and 1.5% multiracial.^[19] Florida has the second largest African-American population in the country, after Texas, & has the highest Latino population on the East Coast. Its ethnic Asian population has grown rapidly since the late 1990s; the majority are Indians (222,576), Filipinos (188,834), Vietnamese (108,825) and ethnic Chinese (142,652). The state has some federally recognized Native American tribes, such as the Seminoles in the southeastern part of the state.^[20]

2021 American Community Survey

Racial Makeup of Florida (2021)[21] White alone (56.06%) Black alone (15.08%) Native American alone (0.29%) Asian alone (2.85%) Pacific Islander alone (0.06%) Some other race alone (6.54%) Two or more races (19.12%)

Racial/Ethnic Makeup of Florida excluding Hispanics from Racial Categories (2021)[21] NH=Non-Hispanic White NH (51.14%) Black NH (14.63%) Native American NH (0.09%) Asian NH (2.78%) Pacific Islander NH (0.05%) Some other race NH (0.68%) Two or more races NH (3.85%) Hispanic Any Race (26.77%)

Racial Makeup of Hispanics in Florida (2021)[21] White alone (18.37%) Black alone (1.7%) Native American alone (0.74%) Asian alone (0.25%) Pacific Islander alone (0.03%) Some other race alone (21.86%) Two or more races (57.04%)

According to the 2021 US Census Bureau estimates, Florida's population was 56.1% White (51.1% Non-Hispanic White), 15.1% Black or African American, 2.9% Asian, 0.3% Native American and Alaskan Native, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 6.5% Some Other Race, and 19.1% from two or more races.^[21] The White population continues to remain the largest racial category as a high percentage of Hispanics in Florida identify as White (18.4%) with others identifying as Some Other Race (21.9%), Multiracial (57.0%), Black (1.7%), American Indian and Alaskan Native (0.2%), Asian (0.1%), and Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (0.1%).^[21] By ethnicity, 26.8% of the total population is Hispanic-Latino (of any race) and 73.2% is Non-Hispanic (of any race). If treated as a separate category, Hispanics are the largest minority group in Florida.^[21]

Historical composition

Historical racial composition	2020[6]	2010[5]	2000[4]	1990[3]	1980[22]
White (non-Hispanic)	51.5%	57.9%	65.4%	73.2%	76.7%
Hispanic or Latino	26.5%	22.5%	16.8%	12.2%	8.8%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	14.5%	15.2%	14.2%	13.1%	13.5%
Asian and Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic)	3.0%	2.4%	1.7%	1.1%	0.5%
Native American (non-Hispanic)	0.2%	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.2%
Other Race (non-Hispanic)	0.6%	0.3%	0.2%	0.1%	0.3%
Two or more races (non-Hispanic)	3.7%	1.6%	1.5%	N/A	N/A
Population	21,538,187	18,801,310	15,982,378	12,937,926	9,746,324

Ancestries

Ancestry[23][24][25][26]	Number (As of 2022)	%
German	2,007,413	9.0
English	1,885,506	8.5
Irish	1,827,802	8.2
American	1,646,830	7.4
Cuban	1,556,305	7.0
Italian	1,281,496	5.8
Puerto Rican	1,239,809	5.6
Mexican	722,134	3.2
Haitian	544,043	2.4
Polish	463,313	2.1
Colombian	444,660	2.0
Venezuelan	380,972	1.7
French (except Basque)	378,739	1.7
Scottish	319,847	1.4
Dominican	309,060	1.4
Jamaican	294,487	1.3
Indian	222,576	1.0
Filipino	188,834	0.8
Guatemalan	174,923	0.8
Subsaharan African	174,695	0.8
Russian	171,638	0.8
Nicaraguan	171,579	0.8
Honduran	162,517	0.7
Arab	159,421	0.7
Scotch-Irish	148,942	0.7
Swedish	146,572	0.7
Peruvian	142,916	0.6
Chinese	142,652	0.6
Dutch	141,601	0.6
Norwegian	120,115	0.5
Brazilian	110,733	0.5
Vietnamese	108,825	0.5
French Canadian	101,114	0.5

Vital statistics

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)^[27][28]

Year	Population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1,000)	Crude death rate (per 1,000)	Natural change (per 1,000)	Crude migration change (per 1,000)
1999	15,111,244	197,023	163,224	33,799	13.04	10.80	2.24	59.72
2000	16,047,515	204,125	164,395	39,730	12.72	10.24	2.48	16.81
2001	16,356,966	205,793	167,269	38,524	12.58	10.23	2.36	17.97
2002	16,689,370	205,579	167,814	37,765	12.32	10.06	2.26	16.59
2003	17,004,085	212,250	168,657	43,593	12.48	9.92	2.56	21.62
2004	17,415,318	218,053	169,008	49,045	12.52	9.70	2.82	21.69
2005	17,842,038	226,240	170,791	55,449	12.68	9.57	3.11	15.10
2006	18,166,990	236,802	170,066	66,736	13.03	9.36	3.67	7.38
2007	18,367,842	239,165	168,096	71,069	13.02	9.15	3.87	4.81
2008	18,527,305	231,445	170,703	60,742	12.49	9.21	3.28	3.49
2009	18,652,644	221,394	169,924	51,470	11.87	9.11	2.76	7.61
2010	18,846,143	214,590	173,791	40,799	11.39	9.22	2.16	8.95
2011	19,055,607	213,414	173,976	39,438	11.20	9.13	2.07	10.86
2012	19,302,016	213,148	177,291	35,857	11.04	9.19	1.86	11.08
2013	19,551,678	215,407	181,112	34,295	11.02	9.26	1.75	13.70
2014	19,853,880	219,991	185,956	34,035	11.08	9.37	1.71	16.68
2015	20,219,111	224,269	191,737	32,532	11.09	9.48	1.61	18.58
2016	20,627,237	225,022	197,313	27,709	10.91	9.57	1.34	15.62
2017	20,977,089	223,630	203,636	19,994	10.66	9.71	0.95	12.29
2018	21,254,926	221,542	205,426	16,116	10.42	9.66	0.76	10.40
2019	21,492,056	220,002	207,002	13,000	10.24	9.63	0.60	4.05
2020	21,592,035	209,671	239,685	–30,014	9.71	11.10	–1.39	12.50
2021	21,831,949	216,260	261,369	–45,109	9.91	11.97	–2.07	27.14
2022	22,379,312	224,433	239,119	–14,686	10.03	10.68	–0.65
2023	22,904,868	221,410	228,940	–7,530	9.66	10	–0.33

Note: Births in the table exceed 100% because some Hispanics are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number.

Live Births by Single Race/Ethnicity of Mother

Race	2013[29]	2014[30]	2015[31]	2016[32]	2017[33]	2018[34]	2019[35]	2020[36]	2021[37]	2022[38]	2023[39]
White	98,586 (45.7%)	100,837 (45.8%)	102,549 (45.7%)	99,344 (44.1%)	96,280 (43.1%)	95,868 (43.2%)	93,590 (42.5%)	88,080 (42.0%)	91,223 (42.2%)	91,763 (40.9%)	90,118 (40.7%)
Black	52,959 (24.6%)	53,148 (24.1%)	53,699 (23.9%)	48,928 (21.7%)	49,428 (22.1%)	48,174 (21.7%)	47,730 (21.7%)	45,585 (21.7%)	45,710 (21.1%)	47,635 (21.2%)	44,898 (20.3%)
Asian	7,265 (3.4%)	7,402 (3.4%)	7,603 (3.4%)	7,178 (3.2%)	7,015 (3.1%)	6,996 (3.2%)	7,069 (3.2%)	6,539 (3.1%)	6,506 (3.0%)	6,592 (2.9%)	6,789 (3.1%)
American Indian	392 (0.2%)	406 (0.2%)	373 (0.2%)	237 (0.1%)	429 (0.2%)	413 (0.2%)	400 (0.2%)	229 (0.1%)	227 (0.1%)	231 (0.1%)	239 (0.1%)
Hispanic (any race)	59,206 (27.5%)	61,849 (28.1%)	64,078 (28.6%)	65,895 (29.3%)	67,049 (30.0%)	67,201 (30.3%)	68,234 (31.0%)	66,156 (31.6%)	69,375 (32.1%)	74,864 (33.4%)	75,987 (34.3%)
Total	215,407 (100%)	219,991 (100%)	224,269 (100%)	225,022 (100%)	223,630 (100%)	221,542 (100%)	220,002 (100%)	209,671 (100%)	216,260 (100%)	224,433 (100%)	221,410 (100%)

Languages

As of 2010^[update], 73.36% of Florida residents age 5 and older spoke English at home as a primary language, while 19.54% spoke Spanish, 1.84% French Creole (mostly Haitian Creole), 0.60% French and 0.50% Portuguese. In total, 26.64% of Florida's population age 5 and older spoke a mother language other than English.^[40]

Florida's public education system identified more than 200 first languages other than English spoken in the homes of students.^[41] In 1990, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) settled a class action lawsuit against the state Florida Department of Education with a consent decree that required educators to be trained in teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).^[42]

Article II, Section 9, of the Florida Constitution provides that "English is the official language of the State of Florida." This provision was adopted in 1988 by a vote following an Initiative Petition.

A Miami accent has developed among persons born and/or raised in and around Miami-Dade County and a few other parts of South Florida.^[43] It is more prominent among Hispanics (especially Cuban Americans and other Latino groups, influenced by the Spanish language).^[44][45]

Top Languages in Florida

Language	Percent of population (2010)[40]
English	73.36%
Spanish	19.54%
French Creole (including Haitian and Antillean Creoles)	1.84%
French	0.60%
Portuguese	0.50%
German	0.42%
Tagalog, Vietnamese, Italian (tied)	0.31%
Arabic	0.22%
Chinese	0.20%
Russian	0.18%
Polish	0.14%

Religion

Religion in Florida (2014)^[46]

1. Protestantism (46%)
2. Roman Catholicism (21%)
3. Mormonism (1%)
4. Jehovah's Witnesses (1%)
5. Other Christian (1%)
6. No religion (24%)
7. Judaism (3%)
8. Other religion (3%)

Florida residents identify as mostly of various Protestant groups. Roman Catholics make up the single largest denomination in the state. Florida residents' current religious affiliations are shown in the table below:^[46]

• Christianity 70%
  • Protestantism 46%
    • Evangelical Protestant 24%
    • Mainline Protestant 14%
    • Historically Black Protestant 8%
  • Catholicism 21%
  • Mormonism 1%
  • Jehovah's Witness 1%
  • Other Christian 1%
• Non-Christian Faiths 6%
  • Judaism 3%
  • Other religion (e.g. Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism) 3%
• Unaffiliated 24%

Veterans

There were 1.6 million veterans in Florida in 2010, representing 8% of the total population.^[47]

Migration

In 2013, most net migrants come from 1) New York, 2) New Jersey, 3) Pennsylvania, and 4) the Midwestern United States; emigration is higher from these same states. For example, about 50,000 moved to New York; but more than 50,000 people moved from New York to Florida.^[48]

Education

In 2023, approximately 34.9% of Florida's population aged 25 years and older held a bachelor's degree or higher. This figure is slightly below the national average at 36.2%, while 66.2% students over the age of 3 years and older were enrolled in school, being slightly below the national average at 67.8%.^[49]