Dorchester County, South Carolina Population 2024

173,616

Dorchester County, South Carolina's estimated 2024 population is 173,616 with a growth rate of 2.23% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Dorchester County, South Carolina is the 12th largest county in South Carolina. The 2010 population was 137,005 and has seen a growth of 26.72% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
2029192,5313,7832%
2028188,7483,7832.05%
2027184,9653,7832.09%
2026181,1823,7832.13%
2025177,3993,7832.18%
2024173,6163,7832.23%
2023169,8333,7832.28%
2022166,0502,5981.59%
2021163,4521,4090.87%
2020162,043-1,474-0.9%
2019163,5172,1771.35%
2018161,3401,8071.13%
2017159,5333,1151.99%
2016156,4183,4722.27%
2015152,9464,0922.75%
2014148,8543,2402.23%
2013145,6142,9692.08%
2012142,6452,4901.78%
2011140,1553,1502.3%
2010137,00500%
199083,06024,29941.35%
198058,76126,48582.06%
197032,2767,89332.37%
196024,3831,7827.88%
195022,6012,67313.41%
194019,9289725.13%
193018,956-503-2.58%
192019,4591,5688.76%
191017,8911,5979.8%
190016,294-176,237-91.54%
2024 Growth Rate
2.23% (3,783)
County Website
Dorchester County
2020 Population
162,043
Area
568 mi²
Density
306 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
7.14% (11,573)
Founded
1897

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White104,51964.46%
Black or African American41,24825.44%
Two or more races8,3915.18%
Other race4,0072.47%
Asian3,2251.99%
Native American4740.29%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander2750.17%

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Other race

Asian

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Dorchester County, South Carolina Population by Race

Dorchester County, South Carolina Population Pyramid 2024

Dorchester County, South Carolina Median Age

37.7

Total

36.8

Male

38.8

Female

Dorchester County, South Carolina Adults

There are 123,052 adults, (23,793 of whom are seniors) in Dorchester County, South Carolina.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Age Dependency

63.3

Age Dependency Ratio

24

Old Age Dependency Ratio

39.4

Child Dependency Ratio

Dorchester County, South Carolina Sex Ratio

Female82,65750.98%
Male79,48249.02%

Dorchester County, South Carolina Population by Age

Dorchester County, South Carolina Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All59,7312.6874.825.2
Married31,7283.1786.913.1
Non Family17,2501.2861.738.3
Female8,3433.4956.543.5
Male2,4103.6273.426.6

3.16

Average Family Size

2.68

Average Household Size

74.8%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Dorchester County, South Carolina Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade7,1906.55%
Associates Degree12,70711.57%
Bachelors Degree21,10819.22%
Graduate Degree11,21310.21%
High School Graduate27,85125.37%
Less Than 9th Grade3,1222.84%
Some College26,60824.23%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Dorchester County, South Carolina Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Dorchester County, South Carolina Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
White72,14667,50723,985
Black26,39922,9115,183
Hispanic5,3893,726916
2+ Races4,2093,5811,294
Other Race3,0272,076265
Asian2,0681,8401,187
Native American33723435
Islander11911922

The highest rate of high school graduation is among islander people with a rate of 100%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 57.4%.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$59,608$78,373$46,202
Graduate Degree$71,294$95,156$57,653
High School Graduate$38,955$48,378$30,616
Less Than 9th Grade$31,556$37,288$21,949
Overall$47,137$58,739$38,557
Some College$45,803$55,314$36,916

$47,137

Average Earnings

$58,739

Average Male

$38,557

Average Female

Dorchester County, South Carolina Earnings by Educational Attainment

Dorchester County, South Carolina Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Dorchester County, South Carolina Language

92.97% of Dorchester County, South Carolina residents speak only English, while 7.03% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 3.87% of the population.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Language

Dorchester County, South Carolina Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
White100,0049,3439.34%
Black40,1838,15020.28%
Hispanic9,6781,03910.74%
Multiple8,13082610.16%
Other3,86848312.49%
Asian3,2222417.48%
Native47416133.97%

12.33%

Overall Poverty Rate

10.24%

Male Poverty Rate

14.32%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Dorchester County, South Carolina

The race most likely to be in poverty in Dorchester County, South Carolina is Native, with 33.97% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Dorchester County, South Carolina is Asian, with 7.48% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 2.07%. Among those working part-time, it was 15.99%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 19.4%.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade23.29%
High School12.46%
Some College7.38%
Bachelors or Greater4.34%

Dorchester County, South Carolina Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed39.83%
Male Unemployed15.38%
Female Employed6.5%
Male Employed3.01%

Dorchester County, South Carolina Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Dorchester County, South Carolina Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$91,847$109,878
Households$73,686$95,551
Married Families$106,880$127,200
Non Families$44,871$55,080

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Dorchester County, South Carolina Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

51.8%

Overall Marriage Rate

54.7%

Male Marriage Rate

49.1%

Female Marriage Rate

Dorchester County, South Carolina Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Dorchester County, South Carolina Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 45-54.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Dorchester County, South Carolina Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

15,285

Number of Veterans

13,191

Male Veterans

2,094

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
First Gulf War5,958
Second Gulf War4,764
Vietnam4,185
Korea352
World War II159

Dorchester County, South Carolina Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
35 to 544,876
55 to 643,967
65 to 743,194
75+2,193
18 to 341,055

Dorchester County, South Carolina Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White11,41214.17%
Black2,9939.88%
Hispanic4887.86%
2+ Races47010.16%
Other Race1865.85%
Asian1616.37%
Native American6315.59%

Dorchester County, South Carolina Veterans by Race

Dorchester County, South Carolina Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

5.05%

Veteran Poverty Rate

24.47%

Veteran Disability Rate

Dorchester County, South Carolina Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

65.1%

Labor Force Participation

60.5%

Employment Rate

5.5%

Unemployment Rate

Dorchester County, South Carolina Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Dorchester County, South Carolina Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Dorchester County, South Carolina 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

47.22%

Born in Dorchester County, South Carolina

94.57%

Native Born

5.43%

Foreign Born

2.94%

Non Citizen

2.48%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

94.57% of Dorchester County, South Carolina residents were born in the United States, with 47.22% having been born in South Carolina. 2.94% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Dorchester County, South Carolina Place of Birth

Sources