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COUNTY

Knox County

Tennessee · 511,453 residents (2025 est.) · 508.325 sq mi
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The short version

Knox County has roughly average household income, with a median household income of $74,222. Population has grown 29% since 2000. Median home value has roughly tripled since 2000, reaching $320,900. It sits in the top 10% of US counties for household income.

At a glance
Lower income
below the US median
US median: $82,259
Younger
median age 37.4
US median: 38.9
More educated
41% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 84%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

494,148
+29%since 2000
from 382,032 in 2000
1990 – 2025
972 / sq mi
+17%since 2009
from 833 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
37.4
+4%since 2000
from 36.0 in 2000
US average: 38.9

PEP 2025 EST:511,453 residents (Census Bureau Vintage 2025, released March 2026)

Population, 19902024
320K367K415K462K510K1990201020202024Knox County
2024494K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 55.5%(26,966)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 95.7%(28,199)
US avg: 6%
10 to 146%(29,867)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 196.9%(34,130)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 248.7%(43,163)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3413.9%(68,817)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4412.9%(63,815)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5412%(59,440)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 6412%(59,359)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 749.7%(48,174)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 844.8%(23,728)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over1.7%(8,490)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

$74,222
+9%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $37,454 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
$43,351
+98%since 2000
from $21,875 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
49.5%
+21.3 ptssince 2009
from 28.2% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
12.2%
−0.4 ptssince 2000
from 12.6% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
0.480
+1%since 2010
from 0.475 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Information12.2%
US avg: 10.8%
Retail trade8.3%
US avg: 9.9%
Wholesale trade7.2%
US avg: 6.9%
Other services7.1%
US avg: 6.7%
Public administration5.2%
US avg: 4.8%
Finance & insurance5%
US avg: 5.9%
Professional, scientific, technical4%
US avg: 5.1%
Transportation & warehousing2.3%
US avg: 2.2%
Arts, entertainment, food2.1%
US avg: 1.9%
Education & health services1%
US avg: 0.9%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing0.3%
US avg: 1.6%
Construction0.2%
US avg: 1.2%
Manufacturing0.1%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

$320,900
+84%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $95,700 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
$1,261
+40%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $493 in 2000
US average: $1,442
65.2%
−1.7 ptssince 2000
from 66.9% in 2000
34.8% rent
8.0%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 8.1% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
15.7%
−6.3 ptssince 2009
from 22.0% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
46.5%
+1.8 ptssince 2009
from 44.7% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
4.3
+36%since 2009
from 3.2 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index: median home value divided by median household income. Lower is more affordable.
74
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
RELATED:See current rent listings in Knox County on RentDataNow
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic87.4%(333,993)
Black8.6%(32,788)
Hispanic / Latino1.3%(4,803)
Asian1.3%(4,909)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic79.1%(390,789)
Black8%(39,459)
Hispanic / Latino6.3%(31,276)
Asian2.3%(11,413)
Other4.3%(21,211)
45
+40%since 2009
from 32 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
28
−19%since 2020
from 35 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
Mexican2.9%(14,572)
Central American1.5%(7,281)
Guatemalan0.8%(3,961)
South American0.6%(2,737)
Puerto Rican0.5%(2,675)
Honduran0.3%(1,709)
Colombian0.2%(1,123)
Cuban0.2%(936)
Venezuelan0.1%(704)
Spaniard0.1%(637)
Panamanian0.1%(522)
Salvadoran0.1%(457)
+ 10 more hispanic origin groups with data
Nicaraguan0.1%(443)
Dominican0.1%(357)
Argentine0.1%(357)
Ecuadorian0%(157)
Peruvian0%(151)
Chilean0%(137)
Bolivian0%(70)
Uruguayan0%(31)
Asian origin
Asian Indian0.7%(3,538)
Chinese0.6%(2,889)
Vietnamese0.2%(1,184)
Korean0.2%(1,138)
Filipino0.2%(938)
Japanese0.1%(334)
Pakistani0%(176)
Laotian0%(162)
Taiwanese0%(158)
Nepalese0%(133)
Thai0%(105)
+ 7 more asian origin groups with data
Kazakh0%(86)
Malaysian0%(52)
Cambodian0%(36)
Mien0%(6)
Burmese0%(3)
Pacific Islander origin
Chamorro0%(149)
Guamanian0%(75)
Samoan0%(36)
Ancestry
English14.7%(72,451)
American13.1%(64,747)
German11.1%(55,065)
Irish10%(49,646)
Scotch-Irish2.8%(13,770)
Scottish2.8%(13,752)
Italian2.7%(13,576)
French1.5%(7,456)
Polish1.4%(6,980)
Dutch1%(4,843)
Arab0.8%(3,771)
+ 49 more ancestry groups with data
Welsh0.7%(3,613)
Swedish0.6%(2,815)
British0.5%(2,609)
Norwegian0.5%(2,369)
Russian0.4%(2,136)
Greek0.3%(1,415)
Ukrainian0.3%(1,400)
French Canadian0.3%(1,260)
Swiss0.2%(1,218)
Hungarian0.2%(1,205)
Lebanese0.2%(988)
Danish0.2%(887)
Czech0.2%(869)
Iranian0.2%(859)
Palestinian0.1%(654)
West Indian0.1%(622)
Nigerian0.1%(532)
Austrian0.1%(514)
Iraqi0.1%(504)
Portuguese0.1%(480)
Canadian0.1%(456)
Slovak0.1%(416)
Romanian0.1%(399)
Brazilian0.1%(362)
Lithuanian0.1%(309)
Egyptian0.1%(301)
Ethiopian0.1%(290)
Finnish0.1%(279)
Kenyan0.1%(278)
Ghanaian0%(219)
Jordanian0%(207)
Guyanese0%(198)
Moroccan0%(190)
Turkish0%(190)
Croatian0%(172)
Armenian0%(163)
Slovene0%(157)
Haitian0%(148)
Jamaican0%(142)
Syrian0%(123)
Belgian0%(90)
Bulgarian0%(62)
Israeli0%(23)
Somali0%(22)
Serbian0%(20)
Latvian0%(5)
RANKED:Largest English population · Largest American population · Largest German population · Largest Irish population · Largest Mexican population
Section 05

Education

41.0%
+11.9 ptssince 2000
from 29.0% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
92.4%
+9.9 ptssince 2000
from 82.5% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
16.2%
+5.4 ptssince 2000
from 10.8% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

22.2 min
+64%since 2000
from 13.5 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
75.8%
−8.6 ptssince 2009
from 84.5% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
6.7%
−1.7 ptssince 2009
from 8.4% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
0.5%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 0.7% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
14.4%
+10.8 ptssince 2009
from 3.5% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
1.6%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 1.7% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
0.1%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 0.2% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
5.3%
−0.5 ptssince 2009
from 5.8% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

3.5%
−2.4 ptssince 2011
from 6.0% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
65.0%
−0.1 ptssince 2011
from 65.1% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
11.6%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 11.7% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
45.1%
−20.8 ptssince 2009
from 65.8% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

49.0%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 48.5% in 2009
51.0%
−0.5 ptssince 2009
from 51.5% in 2009
6.5%
+2.7 ptssince 2009
from 3.8% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
6.7%
−40.9 ptssince 2009
from 47.7% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
12.1%
+0.5 ptssince 2012
from 11.6% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
8.3%
−80.5 ptssince 2013
from 88.8% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
89.5%
+10.9 ptssince 2017
from 78.6% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
91.3%
−2.5 ptssince 2016
from 93.8% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
4.5%
+1.7 ptssince 2016
from 2.7% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married36.4%(72,137)
Married50.9%(100,989)
Widowed2.5%(5,027)
Divorced10.2%(20,182)
Women 15+
Never married31.5%(66,468)
Married47.8%(100,650)
Widowed8.4%(17,658)
Divorced12.3%(26,005)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
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Frequently asked

How many people live in Knox County, Tennessee?

Knox County, Tennessee has about 494,148 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Knox County, Tennessee?

The typical household in Knox County, Tennessee earns about $74,222 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Knox County, Tennessee expensive?

In Knox County, Tennessee, the median home is worth about $320,900, and the typical rent is about $1,261 a month.

How educated are people in Knox County, Tennessee?

About 41.0% of adults age 25 and over in Knox County, Tennessee hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Knox County, Tennessee?

About 12.2% of people in Knox County, Tennessee live below the federal poverty line.

Has Knox County, Tennessee grown since 1990?

Yes, Knox County, Tennessee has grown since 1990. The population has added about 158,399 residents, a change of about 47 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 →