Lake Charles, Louisiana Population 2024

77,884

Lake Charles Demographics

According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Lake Charles was:

  • White: 47.35%
  • Black or African American: 42.82%
  • Two or more races: 5.76%
  • Asian: 2.57%
  • Other race: 1.33%
  • Native American: 0.17%
  • Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 0%
Land Area (mi²)
47.5 sq mi
Density (mi²)
1,640.70/sq mi
Growth Since 2020
-8.24% (-6,995)
The current population of Lake Charles, Louisiana is 77,884 based on our projections of the latest US Census estimates (released May 2024). The last official US Census in 2020 recorded the population at 84,879.

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White38,67547.35%
Black or African American34,97142.82%
Two or more races4,7025.76%
Asian2,1002.57%
Other race1,0891.33%
Native American1420.17%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander00%

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Asian

Other race

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Lake Charles Population by Race

Lake Charles Population Pyramid 2024

Lake Charles Median Age

36.2

Total

34.6

Male

38.1

Female

Lake Charles Adults

There are 63,414 adults, (13,877 of whom are seniors) in Lake Charles.

Lake Charles Age Dependency

64.9

Age Dependency Ratio

28

Old Age Dependency Ratio

36.9

Child Dependency Ratio

Lake Charles Sex Ratio

Female41,64350.98%
Male40,03649.02%

Lake Charles Population by Age

Lake Charles Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All31,8452.4961.138.9
Non Family13,0631.349.950.1
Married12,5133.1379.520.5
Female4,9903.7645.854.2
Male1,2793.4554.245.8

3.25

Average Family Size

2.49

Average Household Size

61.1%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Lake Charles Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade3,7086.81%
Associates Degree5,0239.23%
Bachelors Degree9,95718.29%
Graduate Degree6,06011.13%
High School Graduate16,39030.1%
Less Than 9th Grade1,6192.97%
Some College11,69221.47%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Lake Charles Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Lake Charles Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
White27,47625,96010,945
Black21,55018,3502,869
2+ Races3,0942,7861,164
Hispanic2,5432,105873
Asian1,059932644
Other Race836663183
Native American11611355

The highest rate of high school graduation is among native american people with a rate of 97.41%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 60.81%.

Lake Charles Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$52,628$76,364$42,295
Graduate Degree$67,365$93,889$59,424
High School Graduate$31,458$41,603$22,352
Less Than 9th Grade$28,208$35,615$25,813
Overall$42,462$53,615$31,715
Some College$37,246$52,374$28,817

$42,462

Average Earnings

$53,615

Average Male

$31,715

Average Female

Lake Charles Earnings by Educational Attainment

Lake Charles Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Lake Charles Language

93.04% of Lake Charles residents speak only English, while 6.96% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 3.3% of the population.

Lake Charles Language

Lake Charles Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
Black33,97811,84134.85%
White37,0644,60312.42%
Multiple4,46778717.62%
Hispanic3,61174120.52%
Asian2,08065431.44%
Other1,05424723.43%
Native1425337.32%

23.23%

Overall Poverty Rate

20.72%

Male Poverty Rate

25.6%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Lake Charles

The race most likely to be in poverty in Lake Charles is Native, with 37.32% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Lake Charles is White, with 12.42% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 5.89%. Among those working part-time, it was 23.82%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 34.12%.

Lake Charles Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade33.98%
High School25.55%
Some College16.17%
Bachelors or Greater8.9%

Lake Charles Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed63.38%
Male Unemployed32.33%
Female Employed14.42%
Male Employed7.11%

Lake Charles Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Lake Charles Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$78,275$115,758
Households$56,864$89,252
Married Families$104,992$145,324
Non Families$36,460$49,590

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Lake Charles Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

41.1%

Overall Marriage Rate

44.7%

Male Marriage Rate

37.8%

Female Marriage Rate

Lake Charles Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Lake Charles Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is 55-64, while the female age group most likely to be married is 55-64.

Lake Charles Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Lake Charles Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

4,947

Number of Veterans

4,298

Male Veterans

649

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Second Gulf War1,327
Vietnam1,263
First Gulf War1,121
Korea193
World War II145

Lake Charles Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
75+1,270
55 to 641,192
35 to 541,008
65 to 74846
18 to 34631

Lake Charles Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White2,7158.48%
Black1,8747.37%
2+ Races2487.39%
Hispanic802.75%
Other Race788.75%
Native American1914.62%
Asian130.86%

Lake Charles Veterans by Race

Lake Charles Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

17.53%

Veteran Poverty Rate

44.05%

Veteran Disability Rate

Lake Charles Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

59.8%

Labor Force Participation

56.4%

Employment Rate

5.5%

Unemployment Rate

Lake Charles Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Lake Charles Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Lake Charles Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

77.99%

Born in Lake Charles

95.29%

Native Born

4.71%

Foreign Born

3.11%

Non Citizen

1.6%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

95.29% of Lake Charles residents were born in the United States, with 77.99% having been born in Louisiana. 3.11% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Lake Charles Place of Birth

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
202969,140-1,749-2.47%
202870,889-1,749-2.41%
202772,638-1,748-2.35%
202674,386-1,749-2.3%
202576,135-1,749-2.25%
202477,884-1,749-2.2%
202379,6335610.71%
202279,072-1,384-1.72%
202180,456-4,423-5.21%
202084,8796,3698.11%
201978,5102250.29%
201878,2857270.94%
201777,5581,0961.43%
201676,4628121.07%
201575,6501,1701.57%
201474,4806220.84%
201373,8582220.3%
201273,6367881.08%
201172,8483420.47%
201072,50600%
200071,7571,1771.67%
199070,580-4,646-6.18%
198075,226-2,772-3.55%
197077,99814,60623.04%
196063,39222,12053.6%
195041,27220,06594.61%
194021,2075,41634.3%
193015,7912,70320.65%
192013,0881,63914.32%
191011,4494,76971.39%
19006,6803,23894.07%
18903,442-65,698-95.02%

Lake Charles Population by Year