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COUNTY

Pickens County

South Carolina · 139,198 residents (2025 est.) · 497 sq mi
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The short version

With 134,629 people, Pickens County is a county in South Carolina. 4% of locals were born outside the United States. Home values have more than doubled since 2000, reaching $231,900. The population is up 22% since 2000. 29% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Renters pay $972 a month at the median.

At a glance
Lower income
below the US median
US median: $82,259
Younger
median age 36.2
US median: 38.9
Less educated
29% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 50%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
134,629
+22%since 2000
from 110,757 in 2000
139,198 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimate)
1990 – 2025
Population density
271 / sq mi
+16%since 2009
from 234 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
Median age
36.2
+11%since 2000
from 32.7 in 2000
US average: 38.9
Land area
497 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
90K102K114K126K139K19902000201020202024Pickens County
2024135K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 54.6%(6,242)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 94.9%(6,595)
US avg: 6%
10 to 145.5%(7,471)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 1910.8%(14,607)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 2410.5%(14,181)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3412.3%(16,535)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4410.8%(14,488)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5410.8%(14,583)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 6412.3%(16,601)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 7410%(13,453)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 845.4%(7,228)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over2%(2,645)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$61,064
−7%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $36,214 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$34,724
+99%since 2000
from $17,434 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
41.4%
+18.8 ptssince 2009
from 22.6% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
Poverty rate
17.2%
+3.4 ptssince 2000
from 13.7% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.493
+12%since 2010
from 0.441 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Retail trade14.4%
US avg: 9.9%
Information10%
US avg: 10.8%
Wholesale trade7.2%
US avg: 6.9%
Finance & insurance5.3%
US avg: 5.9%
Other services4.4%
US avg: 6.7%
Professional, scientific, technical3.2%
US avg: 5.1%
Public administration2.6%
US avg: 4.8%
Transportation & warehousing2.1%
US avg: 2.2%
Education & health services2%
US avg: 0.9%
Arts, entertainment, food1%
US avg: 1.9%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing0.5%
US avg: 1.6%
Construction0.5%
US avg: 1.2%
Manufacturing0%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$231,900
+50%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $84,800 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$972
+11%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $479 in 2000
US average: $1,442
Owner-occupied
70.9%
−2.6 ptssince 2000
from 73.5% in 2000
29.1% rent
Vacancy rate
10.7%
−2.3 ptssince 2009
from 12.9% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
Persons per household
2.41 people
Unchangedsince 2009
from 2.40 people in 2009
US average: 2.54
Owner cost-burdened
15.7%
−4.1 ptssince 2009
from 19.8% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
Renter cost-burdened
51.5%
+2.8 ptssince 2009
from 48.7% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
Afford Score
3.8
+34%since 2009
from 2.8 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
47
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic89.3%(98,961)
Black6.8%(7,517)
Hispanic / Latino1.7%(1,879)
Asian1.2%(1,301)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic82.7%(111,318)
Black5.7%(7,685)
Hispanic / Latino5.4%(7,236)
Asian1.6%(2,197)
Other4.6%(6,193)
Diversity Score
38
+38%since 2009
from 28 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
Segregation Score
26
−11%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
Mexican2.4%(3,263)
Puerto Rican1.1%(1,475)
Guatemalan0.4%(544)
Cuban0.3%(466)
Salvadoran0.2%(269)
Colombian0.1%(177)
Spaniard0.1%(163)
Peruvian0.1%(85)
Honduran0.1%(72)
Argentine0%(66)
+ 5 more hispanic origin groups with data
Asian origin
Asian Indian0.6%(765)
Chinese0.2%(316)
Korean0.2%(302)
Filipino0.2%(295)
Vietnamese0.1%(105)
Japanese0.1%(95)
Bangladeshi0.1%(86)
Taiwanese0%(67)
Pakistani0%(48)
Nepalese0%(44)
Pacific Islander origin
Samoan0.1%(181)
Chamorro0%(42)
Tongan0%(27)
Ancestry
English16.3%(21,973)
Irish12.8%(17,205)
German9.6%(12,954)
American9.2%(12,369)
Italian2.8%(3,760)
Scottish2.3%(3,146)
Scotch-Irish2%(2,745)
Polish1.5%(2,000)
French1.3%(1,806)
Welsh0.7%(944)
Dutch0.6%(853)
Norwegian0.5%(630)
+ 38 more ancestry groups with data
Swedish0.4%(563)
British0.4%(486)
Arab0.3%(381)
Portuguese0.2%(212)
West Indian0.1%(194)
Greek0.1%(183)
Russian0.1%(151)
Czech0.1%(145)
Haitian0.1%(139)
Danish0.1%(138)
Romanian0.1%(131)
Croatian0.1%(128)
Hungarian0.1%(128)
Swiss0.1%(128)
Lebanese0.1%(121)
Canadian0.1%(118)
Austrian0.1%(105)
Lithuanian0.1%(105)
Finnish0.1%(96)
Slovak0.1%(74)
Turkish0%(62)
Iranian0%(61)
Egyptian0%(54)
Iraqi0%(53)
Ukrainian0%(49)
Belgian0%(48)
Latvian0%(32)
Brazilian0%(29)
Nigerian0%(27)
Jamaican0%(18)
Syrian0%(15)
Armenian0%(13)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
28.5%
+9.5 ptssince 2000
from 19.1% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
87.8%
+14.2 ptssince 2000
from 73.7% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
Graduate degree
12.5%
+4.7 ptssince 2000
from 7.8% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
26.4 min
+63%since 2000
from 16.2 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
Drive alone to work
78.6%
−5.2 ptssince 2009
from 83.8% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
Carpooled to work
7.8%
−1.2 ptssince 2009
from 8.9% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
Public transit
0.6%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 0.8% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
Worked from home
10.1%
+7.9 ptssince 2009
from 2.2% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
Walked to work
1.9%
−1.1 ptssince 2009
from 3.0% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
Biked to work
0.1%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 0.2% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
No vehicle available
6.4%
+1.5 ptssince 2009
from 4.9% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

Unemployment rate
3.6%
−6.6 ptssince 2011
from 10.2% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
Labor force participation
57.1%
−2.5 ptssince 2011
from 59.6% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
Women 20-64 in the labor force
70.0%
+0.6 ptssince 2020
from 69.4% in 2020
US average: 74.6%
Self-employed
14.4%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 14.5% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
Management & professional
38.0%
+4.4 ptssince 2009
from 33.6% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

Male
49.9%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 50.1% in 2009
Female
50.1%
+0.2 ptssince 2009
from 49.9% in 2009
Foreign born
3.5%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 3.9% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
Veterans
5.9%
−4.0 ptssince 2009
from 9.9% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
With a disability
15.4%
+1.4 ptssince 2012
from 14.0% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
Uninsured
8.6%
−5.0 ptssince 2013
from 13.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Broadband at home
87.3%
+15.2 ptssince 2017
from 72.1% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
Computer in household
93.6%
+5.0 ptssince 2020
from 88.6% in 2020
US average: 95.5%
Same house as last year
82.9%
+1.1 ptssince 2020
from 81.9% in 2020
US average: 87.7%
English only at home
94.4%
−0.9 ptssince 2016
from 95.3% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
Spanish at home
3.3%
+0.9 ptssince 2016
from 2.3% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married39.2%(22,260)
Married50.3%(28,521)
Widowed2.3%(1,312)
Divorced8.2%(4,624)
Women 15+
Never married32.8%(18,867)
Married47%(27,083)
Widowed9.9%(5,720)
Divorced10.3%(5,934)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Uninsured
8.6%
−5.0 ptssince 2013
from 13.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
53.5%
−1.4 ptssince 2020
from 54.9% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
17.5%
+0.4 ptssince 2020
from 17.1% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
19.3%
+0.8 ptssince 2020
from 18.5% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
17.5%
+1.2 ptssince 2020
from 16.3% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
2.3%
+0.1 ptssince 2020
from 2.2% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
68.9%
−1.6 ptssince 2020
from 70.5% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
34.7%
+1.9 ptssince 2020
from 32.8% 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)23.4%(1,511)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)19.7%(1,276)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era38.5%(2,490)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War6.5%(420)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.3%(20)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 6,468 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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Pop 131,647
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Pop 135,088
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Pop 126,332
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Places similar to Pickens County
Head to head

Compare Pickens County to nearby counties

PICKENS COUNTY VS
Greenville County
Income$76,932+26%
Home value$299,000+29%
Population583,125+319%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
PICKENS COUNTY VS
Oconee County
Income$62,388+2%
Home value$237,100+2%
Population83,775−40%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
PICKENS COUNTY VS
Transylvania County
Income$66,184+8%
Home value$373,600+61%
Population34,211−75%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
PICKENS COUNTY VS
Anderson County
Income$66,651+9%
Home value$231,900same
Population219,930+58%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Pickens County, South Carolina?

Pickens County, South Carolina has about 134,629 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Pickens County, South Carolina?

The typical household in Pickens County, South Carolina earns about $61,064 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Pickens County, South Carolina expensive?

In Pickens County, South Carolina, the median home is worth about $231,900, and the typical rent is about $972 a month.

How educated are people in Pickens County, South Carolina?

About 28.5% of adults age 25 and over in Pickens County, South Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Pickens County, South Carolina?

About 17.2% of people in Pickens County, South Carolina live below the federal poverty line.

Has Pickens County, South Carolina grown since 1990?

Yes, Pickens County, South Carolina has grown since 1990. The population has added about 40,735 residents, a change of about 43 percent over that period.

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

How we source and harmonize this data →