Demographics of 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. 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.
Between the 2010 [United States census|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. 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. In the 2020 census Florida had a population density of 401.4 people per square mile.

Population

With a population getting close to 23 million people according to the 2023 US Census estimates, 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, and the 8th fewest people under 18. 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. 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.

Population by county by year

The population for each respective year comes from the decennial United States Census results.
County202020102000
Alachua278,468247,336217,955
Baker28,25927,11522,259
Bay175,216168,852148,217
Bradford28,30328,52026,088
Brevard606,612543,376476,230
Broward1,944,3751,748,0661,623,018
Calhoun13,64814,62513,017
Charlotte186,847159,978141,627
Citrus153,843141,236118,085
Clay218,245190,865140,814
Collier375,752321,520251,377
Columbia69,69867,53156,513
DeSoto33,97634,86232,209
Dixie16,75916,42213,827
Duval995,567864,263778,879
Escambia321,905297,619294,410
Flagler115,37895,69649,832
Franklin12,45111,5499,829
Gadsden43,82646,38945,087
Gilchrist17,86416,93914,437
Glades12,12612,88410,576
Gulf14,19215,86314,560
Hamilton14,00414,79913,327
Hardee25,32727,73126,938
Hendry39,61939,14036,210
Hernando194,515172,778130,802
Highlands101,23598,78687,366
Hillsborough1,459,7621,229,226998,948
Holmes19,65319,92718,564
Indian River159,788138,028112,947
Jackson47,31949,74646,755
Jefferson14,51014,76112,902
Lafayette8,2268,8707,022
Lake383,956297,047210,527
Lee760,822618,754440,888
Leon292,198275,487239,452
Levy42,91540,80134,450
Liberty7,9748,3657,021
Madison17,96819,22418,733
Manatee399,710322,833264,002
Marion375,908331,303258,916
Martin158,431146,318126,731
Miami-Dade 2,701,7672,496,4572,253,779
Monroe82,87473,09079,589
Nassau90,35273,31457,663
Okaloosa211,668180,822170,498
Okeechobee39,64439,99635,910
Orange1,429,9081,145,956896,344
Osceola388,656268,685172,493
Palm Beach1,492,1911,320,1341,131,191
Pasco561,891464,697344,768
Pinellas959,107916,542921,495
Polk725,046602,095483,924
Putnam73,32174,36470,423
St. Johns273,425190,039123,135
St. Lucie329,226277,789192,695
Santa Rosa188,000151,372117,743
Sarasota434,006379,448325,961
Seminole470,856422,718365,199
Sumter129,75293,42053,345
Suwannee43,47441,55134,844
Taylor21,79622,57019,256
Union16,14715,53513,442
Volusia553,543494,593443,343
Wakulla33,76430,77622,863
Walton75,30555,04340,601
Washington25,31824,89620,973
Total21,538,18718,801,33215,982,824

Age

In the 2020 US Census Florida had a median age of 43 years old. The median age was higher for females than males; with the median age being 41.5 for males and 44.5 for females.

Housing

Occupancy rates in Florida

The 2020 Census reported there were 9,865,350 housing units in Florida. Most housing units were reported as being occupied and 13.5% were reported as being vacant.
Of those which were occupied, 65.1% were occupied by owners while 34.9% by renters.
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.

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.

Political

According to the Florida Department of State, as of June 30, 2025, Republicans have a majority over Democrats in voter registration, with 5,509,500 registered voters compared to the 4,192,786 registered voters that are registered Democrat, while 3,438,211 are registered identify as having no party affiliation.

Race and ethnicity

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, 14.5% African American, 0.4% Native American, 3.0% Asian, 0.6% 'some other race,' and 3.7% multiracial.
File:Florida Counties by race.svg|thumb|Map of counties in Florida by racial plurality, per the 2020 US Census
Non-Hispanic White
Hispanic or Latino
'''Black or African American'''

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, 15.2% African American, 2.4% Asian, 0.3% Native American, 0.3% "some other race," and 1.5% multiracial. 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, Filipinos
, Vietnamese and ethnic Chinese. The state has some federally recognized Native American tribes, such as the Seminoles in the southeastern part of the state.

2024 American Community Survey one-year estimates

According to the 2024 US Census Bureau one-year estimates, Florida's population was 54.2% white, 14.8% Black or African American, 3.1% Asian, 0.4% Native American and Alaskan Native, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 6.9% Some Other Race, and 20.6% from two or more races. The white population continues to remain the largest racial category as a high percentage of Hispanics in Florida identify as white with others identifying as Some Other Race, Multiracial, Black, American Indian and Alaskan Native, Asian, and Hawaiian and Pacific Islander. By ethnicity, 28.7% of the total population is Hispanic-Latino and 71.3% is Non-Hispanic. If treated as a separate category, Hispanics are the largest minority group in Florida. In 2024, Florida became the 9th state to reach majority-minority status as the non-Hispanic white population has fallen below 50%.

Vital statistics

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
YearPopulationLive
births
DeathsNatural changeCrude birth rate
Crude death rate
Natural change
Crude migration change
199915,111,244197,023163,22433,79913.0410.802.2459.72
200016,047,515204,125164,39539,73012.7210.242.4816.81
200116,356,966205,793167,26938,52412.5810.232.3617.97
200216,689,370205,579167,81437,76512.3210.062.2616.59
200317,004,085212,250168,65743,59312.489.922.5621.62
200417,415,318218,053169,00849,04512.529.702.8221.69
200517,842,038226,240170,79155,44912.689.573.1115.10
200618,166,990236,802170,06666,73613.039.363.677.38
200718,367,842239,165168,09671,06913.029.153.874.81
200818,527,305231,445170,70360,74212.499.213.283.49
200918,652,644221,394169,92451,47011.879.112.767.61
201018,846,143214,590173,79140,79911.399.222.168.95
201119,055,607213,414173,97639,43811.209.132.0710.86
201219,302,016213,148177,29135,85711.049.191.8611.08
201319,551,678215,407181,11234,29511.029.261.7513.70
201419,853,880219,991185,95634,03511.089.371.7116.68
201520,219,111224,269191,73732,53211.099.481.6118.58
201620,627,237225,022197,31327,70910.919.571.3415.62
201720,977,089223,630203,63619,99410.669.710.9512.29
201821,254,926221,542205,42616,11610.429.660.7610.40
201921,492,056220,002207,00213,00010.249.630.604.05
202021,592,035209,671239,685–30,0149.7111.10–1.3912.50
202121,831,949216,260261,369–45,1099.9111.97–2.0727.14
202222,379,312224,433239,119–14,68610.0310.68–0.65
202322,904,868221,410228,940–7,5309.6610–0.33
2024224,242228,401–4,159

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.
Race20132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
White98,586 100,837 102,549 99,344 96,280 95,868 93,590 88,080 91,223 91,763 90,118
Black52,959 53,148 53,699 48,928 49,428 48,174 47,730 45,585 45,710 47,635 44,898
Asian7,265 7,402 7,603 7,178 7,015 6,996 7,069 6,539 6,506 6,592 6,789
American Indian392 406 373 237 429 413 400 229 227 231 239
Hispanic 59,206 61,849 64,078 65,895 67,049 67,201 68,234 66,156 69,375 74,864 75,987
Total215,407 219,991 224,269 225,022 223,630 221,542 220,002 209,671 216,260 224,433 221,410

Languages

, 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, 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.
Florida's public education system identified more than 200 first languages other than English spoken in the homes of students. 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.
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. It is more prominent among Hispanics.
LanguagePercent of
population
English73.36%
Spanish19.54%
French Creole
1.84%
French0.60%
Portuguese0.50%
German0.42%
Tagalog, Vietnamese, Italian 0.31%
Arabic0.22%
Chinese0.20%
Russian0.18%
Polish0.14%

Religion

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:

Veterans

There were 1.6 million veterans in Florida in 2010, representing 8% of the total population. Florida has one of the largest veteran populations in the United States, ranking third nationally behind California and Texas. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs suggests there were 1,430,000 veterans in Florida during 2023 with the majority of the veteran population being male, being 1,265,000 male veterans to 168,000 female veterans.

Homelessness

The Florida Council on Homelessness reported that in 2023, the state had 30,809 individuals experiencing homelessness on a single night. Approximately half of this population was unsheltered, not fit for suitable living conditions. According to The Florida Council on Homelessness there is a significant disparity among the Black population being represented in the homelessness population.

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. Florida's population growth is influenced by international migration, as of 2021, over 21% of the state's population was foreign-born, with 60.2% being naturalized U.S. citizens. The largest number of international migration residents come from Latin America, making up over 75% of this population.

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%. Educational attainment among Florida's adult population has shown a slow increase over the years as in 2023, 33.2% of Florida's population aged 25 and older had earned a bachelor's degree or higher, representing an upward trend in educational attainment, although the increase varies significantly across different counties.