With 17,728 people, Portsmouth is a city in Ohio. 35.4% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Four-year degrees are less common here than nationally, at 17% of adults. That trails the Ohio median by roughly 51%. Owners hold 48% of the housing stock. The typical home is worth $103,300, having more than doubled since 2000.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $34,713, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Mid-age
median age 39.0
US median: 38.9
Less educated
17% 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 Portsmouth
What changed most since 1990
Population22,744 → 17,728(−22%)US over the same years: +35%
Adults with a bachelor's degree11.5% → 17.4%(+5.9 pts)US over the same years: +15.3 pts
White share92.9% → 84.5%(−8.4 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Portsmouth's population equals 24% of Scioto County's. Its number of foreign-born residents equals 55% of the county's. Its number of households without a car equals 49% 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)6.3%(61)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)16.2%(156)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era61.4%(590)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War2.4%(23)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.3%(3)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 961 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
Portsmouth, decade by decade
Portsmouth 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
22,744
$37,758
$76,562
11.5%
16.7
2000
20,909
$41,905
$95,455
12.5%
21.1
2010
20,226
$32,037
$99,837
16.1%
25.7
2020
18,252
$37,715
$91,994
14.7%
31.8
2024
17,728
$34,713
$103,300
17.4%
34.8
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.
