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COUNTY

Polk County

Oregon · 90,037 residents (2025 est.) · 741 sq mi
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The short version

With 89,662 people, Polk County is a county in Oregon. Few US counties rank higher on income. The population is up 44% since 2000. The foreign-born share is 6%. About 31% of adults have finished a four-year degree. The typical home is worth $454,700, having roughly tripled since 2000.

At a glance
Average income
near the US median
US median: $82,259
Mid-age
median age 37.8
US median: 38.9
Average education
31% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 74%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
89,662
+44%since 2000
from 62,380 in 2000
90,037 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimate)
1990 – 2025
Population density
121 / sq mi
+20%since 2009
from 101 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
Median age
37.8
+4%since 2000
from 36.5 in 2000
US average: 38.9
Land area
741 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
46K58K70K82K94K19902000201020202024Polk County
202490K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 55.2%(4,642)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 96%(5,346)
US avg: 6%
10 to 146.3%(5,628)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 197.5%(6,747)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 248.6%(7,702)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3412.7%(11,387)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4412.3%(11,040)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5411.3%(10,124)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 6411.1%(9,984)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 7410.9%(9,796)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 845.9%(5,331)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over2.2%(1,935)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$85,118
+10%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $42,311 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$40,635
+111%since 2000
from $19,282 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
55.4%
+24.3 ptssince 2009
from 31.1% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
Poverty rate
12.7%
+1.2 ptssince 2000
from 11.5% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.441
+8%since 2010
from 0.410 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Information12.5%
US avg: 10.8%
Retail trade7.3%
US avg: 9.9%
Wholesale trade7.1%
US avg: 6.9%
Other services4.8%
US avg: 6.7%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing3.6%
US avg: 1.6%
Construction3.6%
US avg: 1.2%
Finance & insurance3.5%
US avg: 5.9%
Public administration3.1%
US avg: 4.8%
Professional, scientific, technical2.6%
US avg: 5.1%
Transportation & warehousing1.4%
US avg: 2.2%
Arts, entertainment, food1%
US avg: 1.9%
Education & health services0.8%
US avg: 0.9%
Manufacturing0%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$454,700
+74%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $143,200 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$1,299
+26%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $565 in 2000
US average: $1,442
Owner-occupied
64.7%
−3.7 ptssince 2000
from 68.4% in 2000
35.3% rent
Vacancy rate
5.4%
−1.2 ptssince 2009
from 6.6% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
Persons per household
2.65 people
−6%since 2009
from 2.81 people in 2009
US average: 2.54
Owner cost-burdened
23.7%
−6.5 ptssince 2009
from 30.2% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
Renter cost-burdened
49.0%
−1.1 ptssince 2009
from 50.1% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
Afford Score
5.3
+27%since 2009
from 4.2 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Years of local income it takes to buy a local home, on a scale of about 0 to 15. Lower is more affordable.
Gentrification Score
61
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic85.6%(53,394)
Black0.4%(229)
Hispanic / Latino8.8%(5,480)
Asian1.1%(671)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic73.9%(66,254)
Black0.6%(581)
Hispanic / Latino15.6%(13,990)
Asian1.9%(1,666)
Other8%(7,171)
Diversity Score
53
+38%since 2009
from 38 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
Segregation Score
21
−28%since 2020
from 29 in 2020
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means White and non-White residents are more separated across neighborhoods.
Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Mexican12.7%(11,373)
Central American1.1%(1,019)
Guatemalan0.7%(612)
Spaniard0.4%(336)
Puerto Rican0.4%(330)
Salvadoran0.3%(299)
Peruvian0.2%(148)
Cuban0.2%(146)
Colombian0.2%(138)
Costa Rican0.1%(91)
Dominican0.1%(55)
+ 4 more hispanic origin groups with data
Chilean0.1%(50)
Argentine0%(32)
Uruguayan0%(10)
Asian origin
Chinese0.4%(345)
Asian Indian0.4%(320)
Filipino0.3%(303)
Japanese0.2%(167)
Nepalese0.2%(156)
Korean0.1%(103)
Vietnamese0.1%(81)
Kazakh0%(30)
Thai0%(18)
Laotian0%(2)
Pacific Islander origin
Chamorro0.1%(116)
Tongan0.1%(92)
Samoan0%(15)
Ancestry
German18.8%(16,854)
English14.7%(13,156)
Irish10.3%(9,242)
American4.7%(4,195)
Scottish3.3%(3,002)
Italian3.1%(2,775)
Norwegian3%(2,716)
Swedish2.6%(2,322)
French2.3%(2,057)
Dutch1.6%(1,450)
Polish1.3%(1,135)
Scotch-Irish0.8%(750)
+ 35 more ancestry groups with data
Russian0.8%(698)
Danish0.7%(666)
British0.7%(629)
Welsh0.5%(451)
Ukrainian0.5%(449)
Swiss0.5%(440)
Portuguese0.4%(359)
Czech0.3%(299)
Belgian0.3%(245)
Canadian0.2%(212)
Finnish0.2%(193)
Austrian0.2%(190)
Greek0.2%(166)
Hungarian0.1%(124)
Slovak0.1%(116)
Arab0.1%(107)
Lithuanian0.1%(89)
Australian0.1%(87)
Turkish0.1%(86)
Lebanese0.1%(84)
Iranian0.1%(53)
Armenian0%(36)
Serbian0%(24)
Brazilian0%(23)
Croatian0%(18)
Latvian0%(17)
Nigerian0%(11)
Romanian0%(10)
Haitian0%(6)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
31.2%
+5.9 ptssince 2000
from 25.3% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
91.7%
+6.3 ptssince 2000
from 85.5% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
Graduate degree
12.3%
+3.1 ptssince 2000
from 9.2% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
25.3 min
+54%since 2000
from 16.4 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
Drive alone to work
66.9%
−11.7 ptssince 2009
from 78.6% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
Carpooled to work
10.2%
+1.1 ptssince 2009
from 9.1% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
Public transit
0.4%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 0.8% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
Worked from home
17.5%
+11.5 ptssince 2009
from 6.0% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
Walked to work
3.3%
−0.6 ptssince 2009
from 3.9% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
Biked to work
0.6%
+0.3 ptssince 2009
from 0.4% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
No vehicle available
4.8%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 4.9% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

Unemployment rate
5.7%
−3.1 ptssince 2011
from 8.7% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
Labor force participation
59.8%
−0.7 ptssince 2011
from 60.5% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
Women 20-64 in the labor force
73.9%
+2.1 ptssince 2020
from 71.8% in 2020
US average: 74.6%
Self-employed
18.5%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 18.8% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
Management & professional
39.4%
+6.6 ptssince 2009
from 32.8% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

Male
49.2%
+0.7 ptssince 2009
from 48.5% in 2009
Female
50.8%
−0.7 ptssince 2009
from 51.5% in 2009
Foreign born
6.3%
−0.6 ptssince 2009
from 6.9% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
Veterans
9.1%
−3.3 ptssince 2009
from 12.4% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
With a disability
17.1%
+3.2 ptssince 2012
from 13.9% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
Uninsured
4.9%
−6.8 ptssince 2013
from 11.7% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Broadband at home
91.3%
+8.9 ptssince 2017
from 82.4% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
Computer in household
96.1%
+1.2 ptssince 2020
from 94.9% in 2020
US average: 95.5%
Same house as last year
85.9%
+2.4 ptssince 2020
from 83.4% in 2020
US average: 87.7%
English only at home
88.0%
+1.9 ptssince 2016
from 86.1% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
Spanish at home
8.8%
−1.6 ptssince 2016
from 10.4% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married34.6%(12,478)
Married52.3%(18,864)
Widowed2.4%(855)
Divorced10.7%(3,850)
Women 15+
Never married29.5%(11,191)
Married48%(18,229)
Widowed7.8%(2,982)
Divorced14.7%(5,597)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Uninsured
4.9%
−6.8 ptssince 2013
from 11.7% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
55.1%
−2.8 ptssince 2020
from 57.9% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
14.2%
−0.3 ptssince 2020
from 14.5% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
20.2%
+0.9 ptssince 2020
from 19.3% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
27.0%
+5.4 ptssince 2020
from 21.6% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
2.8%
+0.4 ptssince 2020
from 2.4% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
67.5%
−3.2 ptssince 2020
from 70.7% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
44.2%
+5.4 ptssince 2020
from 38.8% in 2020
US average: 36.7%

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)25.6%(1,631)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)20.3%(1,292)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era34.6%(2,206)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War5.3%(338)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.7%(44)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 6,368 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
Drill deeper

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Head to head

Compare Polk County to nearby counties

POLK COUNTY VS
Yamhill County
Income$90,063+6%
Home value$471,700+4%
Population110,024+22%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
POLK COUNTY VS
Benton County
Income$77,702−9%
Home value$513,000+13%
Population97,728+9%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
POLK COUNTY VS
Lincoln County
Income$63,165−26%
Home value$410,800−10%
Population50,636−44%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
POLK COUNTY VS
Marion County
Income$77,351−9%
Home value$416,400−8%
Population355,777+295%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Polk County, Oregon?

Polk County, Oregon has about 89,662 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Polk County, Oregon?

The typical household in Polk County, Oregon earns about $85,118 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Polk County, Oregon expensive?

In Polk County, Oregon, the median home is worth about $454,700, and the typical rent is about $1,299 a month.

How educated are people in Polk County, Oregon?

About 31.2% of adults age 25 and over in Polk County, Oregon hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Polk County, Oregon?

About 12.7% of people in Polk County, Oregon live below the federal poverty line.

Has Polk County, Oregon grown since 1990?

Yes, Polk County, Oregon has grown since 1990. The population has added about 40,121 residents, a change of about 81 percent over that period.

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DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR + DECENNIAL CENSUS · UPDATED 2024

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