Elmira is home to 26,257 people in New York. The poverty rate is 30.2%, above the 12.5% national rate. 18% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, below the 36% national rate. Households here earn about 50% less than in New York as a whole. Home values have risen by half since 2000, reaching $93,000. 50% of homes are owner-occupied.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $43,120, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Younger
median age 36.5
US median: 38.9
Less educated
18% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Stable housing
home values roughly flat, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Elmira
What changed most since 1990
Population33,724 → 26,257(−22%)US over the same years: +35%
Poverty rate22.2% → 30.2%(+8.0 pts)US over the same years: −0.8 pts
Adults with a bachelor's degree11.1% → 18.1%(+7.0 pts)US over the same years: +15.3 pts
Elmira's population equals 32% of Chemung County's. Its number of households without a car equals 63% of the county's. Its number of residents living in poverty equals 59% of the county's.
Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.
Section 09 · Service history
Veterans
Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)11.5%(142)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)34.1%(421)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era26.6%(328)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War2.8%(34)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.8%(10)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 1,233 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Over time
Elmira, decade by decade
Elmira population, inflation-adjusted income and home value, education, and diversity by year
Year
Population
Median household income
Median home value
Bachelor's degree+
Diversity score
1990
33,724
$44,516
$101,763
11.1%
34.1
2000
30,940
$49,717
$95,637
14.6%
41.1
2010
29,200
$45,637
$93,939
13.3%
49.1
2020
26,523
$44,292
$92,357
15.4%
59.7
2024
26,257
$43,120
$93,000
18.1%
60.7
Census years come from the decennial census and the latest year from the American Community Survey, so part of any change between those two rows can reflect the different surveys. Dollar figures are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; a figure ending in "+" was at the Census Bureau's reporting cap that year. The diversity score runs from 0 to 100; see how it's calculated.
