Americans are growing older. The 2020 census found that the median age rose in part because the fastest-growing segment of the population was among those 65 and older, up 38.6% over the decade to total 55.8 million senior adults.
The median age in the U.S. at the time of the 10-year count was 38.8, which the U.S. Census Bureau said is “an increase of more than 10 years over the past five decades.” Older Americans make up almost 17% of the nation’s population, meaning 1 in 6 are older.
Americans are also growing more diverse. As Brookings Institution scholar William H. Frey reported last week, the older population is growing, the youth population declining. And the aging pattern is not “race-neutral,” he noted. “Nonwhite residents accounted for all of the gains in post-baby-boomer populations. Although all race and ethnic groups are aging to some degree, the median age of white Americans is higher than all others in most geographic areas.”
Frey, a senior fellow at Brookings Metro, is among those calling the shifting demographics a “racial generation gap.” He notes that the younger population has been more influenced by immigration and is consequently more diverse.
Geographic demographics can vary considerably.
Writes Frey: “All states except North Dakota and all major metro areas showed a rise in their median age. These ranged from a median age of 31.3 in Utah to 45.1 in Maine; and from 32.8 in the Salt Lake City metro area to 42.9 in Pittsburgh. Rankings on median age tend to mirror those of senior population shares — with slow-growing Northeast, and Midwest areas, along with Florida and several retirement-magnet metro areas, generally ranking higher. But some areas with the lowest 2020 median ages (including Salt Lake City, Houston and Dallas) still showed notable median age gains from the prior decade, demonstrating that population aging is pervasive.”
Household makeup
The demographics as reported by the Census Bureau show other interesting shifts. For instance, the dependency rate is 63.6. That means that for every 100 working-age adults ages 18-64, there are 63.6 minor children and adults 65 and older who are likely not working and depend on those workers for their support.
Among other interesting highlights:
- More than half (53.2%) of U.S. households include couples — either married or cohabiting. Of those, 1.7% are same-sex partners.
- Roughly two-thirds of all U.S. households are families; more than 7 in 10 of those include married couples.
- Those living alone made up more than one-fourth of U.S. households (27.6%).
- 1 in 14 households is multigenerational.
- Just over 1 in 12 children under age 18 lived in their grandparents’ home.
Updated counts
The bureau issues interim estimates between the 10-year full census counts. On July 1, 2022, the Census Bureau said the U.S. population had grown since the 2020 census by nearly 2 million people, based on estimates, to 333,287,557. The bureau also estimated that 75.5% of the population is white alone, 13.6% Black alone, 1.3% American Indian or Alaska Native alone, 6.3% Asian alone and 0.3% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone. Approximately 3% of the population has two or more races. Nearly 1 in 5 were estimated to be Hispanic or Latino, which can include any race. Of whites, just under 6 in 10 were not also Hispanic or Latino.
Of those 25 or older, between 2017 and 2021, 88.9% had a high school diploma or higher level of education, while one-third had a bachelor’s degree or higher.
An estimated 11.6% lived in poverty, while the median household income in 2021 dollars for the years 2017-2021 was $69,021.