Shelby County, Tennessee Population 2024

903,727

Shelby County, Tennessee's estimated 2024 population is 903,727 with a growth rate of -0.69% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Shelby County, Tennessee is the largest county in Tennessee. The 2010 population was 928,475 and has seen a growth of -2.67% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
2029872,152-6,315-0.72%
2028878,467-6,315-0.71%
2027884,782-6,315-0.71%
2026891,097-6,315-0.7%
2025897,412-6,315-0.7%
2024903,727-6,315-0.69%
2023910,042-6,315-0.69%
2022916,357-7,025-0.76%
2021923,382-6,381-0.69%
2020929,763-7,307-0.78%
2019937,070-169-0.02%
2018937,2391,2270.13%
2017936,012-704-0.08%
2016936,716-882-0.09%
2015937,598-351-0.04%
2014937,949-764-0.08%
2013938,713-708-0.08%
2012939,4216,1000.65%
2011933,3214,8460.52%
2010928,47500%
1990826,33049,2176.33%
1980777,11355,0997.63%
1970722,01494,99515.15%
1960627,019144,62629.98%
1950482,393124,14334.65%
1940358,25051,76816.89%
1930306,48283,26637.3%
1920223,21631,77716.6%
1910191,43937,88224.67%
1900153,55740,81736.2%
1890112,74034,31043.75%
188078,4302,0522.69%
187076,37828,28658.82%
186048,09216,93554.35%
185031,15716,436111.65%
184014,7219,073160.64%
18305,6485,2841451.65%
1820364-871,788-99.96%
2024 Growth Rate
-0.69% (-6,315)
County Website
Shelby County
County Seat
Memphis
2020 Population
929,763
Area
761 mi²
Density
1188 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
-2.8% (-26,036)
Founded
November 24, 1819

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
Black or African American498,21453.78%
White339,65036.66%
Two or more races30,7853.32%
Other race28,5053.08%
Asian26,7232.88%
Native American2,1920.24%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander3710.04%

Black or African American

White

Two or more races

Other race

Asian

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Shelby County, Tennessee Population by Race

Shelby County, Tennessee Population Pyramid 2024

Shelby County, Tennessee Median Age

35.9

Total

34.3

Male

37.5

Female

Shelby County, Tennessee Adults

There are 695,174 adults, (131,753 of whom are seniors) in Shelby County, Tennessee.

Shelby County, Tennessee Age Dependency

64.4

Age Dependency Ratio

23.4

Old Age Dependency Ratio

41

Child Dependency Ratio

Shelby County, Tennessee Sex Ratio

Female484,86152.34%
Male441,57947.66%

Shelby County, Tennessee Population by Age

Shelby County, Tennessee Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All357,8392.5555.244.8
Non Family140,1581.242.557.5
Married130,9203.2778.421.6
Female69,7253.6639.760.3
Male17,0363.4444.555.5

3.33

Average Family Size

2.55

Average Household Size

55.2%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Shelby County, Tennessee Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade42,0006.88%
Associates Degree40,1626.58%
Bachelors Degree123,23920.18%
Graduate Degree83,13813.61%
High School Graduate168,47727.58%
Less Than 9th Grade21,3043.49%
Some College132,45621.69%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Shelby County, Tennessee Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Shelby County, Tennessee Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
Black315,745277,80268,039
White237,620228,300116,624
Hispanic28,97316,2075,508
Asian18,39615,98012,142
2+ Races15,83312,4614,978
Other Race12,6516,3182,041
Native American831515132
Islander317307155

The highest rate of high school graduation is among islander people with a rate of 96.85%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 66%.

Shelby County, Tennessee Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$56,865$70,419$49,395
Graduate Degree$80,598$101,311$69,114
High School Graduate$32,376$36,649$27,099
Less Than 9th Grade$27,554$30,214$21,519
Overall$43,379$48,459$39,172
Some College$38,905$45,037$34,805

$43,379

Average Earnings

$48,459

Average Male

$39,172

Average Female

Shelby County, Tennessee Earnings by Educational Attainment

Shelby County, Tennessee Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Shelby County, Tennessee Language

90.19% of Shelby County, Tennessee residents speak only English, while 9.81% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 5.46% of the population.

Shelby County, Tennessee Language

Shelby County, Tennessee Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
Black489,472120,69624.66%
White313,81824,5207.81%
Hispanic61,48514,36023.36%
Other28,2447,23125.6%
Multiple30,2295,75119.02%
Asian26,4662,0037.57%
Native1,68080247.74%
Islander35917247.91%

18.12%

Overall Poverty Rate

16.44%

Male Poverty Rate

19.64%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Shelby County, Tennessee

The race most likely to be in poverty in Shelby County, Tennessee is Islander, with 47.91% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Shelby County, Tennessee is Asian, with 7.57% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.39%. Among those working part-time, it was 19.77%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 29.24%.

Shelby County, Tennessee Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade32.82%
High School21.44%
Some College12.2%
Bachelors or Greater4.51%

Shelby County, Tennessee Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed40.27%
Male Unemployed34.86%
Female Employed8.99%
Male Employed5.23%

Shelby County, Tennessee Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Shelby County, Tennessee Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$77,264$111,421
Households$59,621$90,500
Married Families$109,514$146,558
Non Families$38,611$54,687

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Shelby County, Tennessee Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

38.8%

Overall Marriage Rate

42.5%

Male Marriage Rate

35.6%

Female Marriage Rate

Shelby County, Tennessee Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Shelby County, Tennessee 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.

Shelby County, Tennessee Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Shelby County, Tennessee Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

45,641

Number of Veterans

39,818

Male Veterans

5,823

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Vietnam15,338
First Gulf War11,820
Second Gulf War10,351
Korea1,783
World War II431

Shelby County, Tennessee Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
65 to 7411,542
35 to 5411,438
55 to 6410,760
75+7,845
18 to 344,056

Shelby County, Tennessee Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
Black23,5416.46%
White20,7317.62%
2+ Races9364.96%
Hispanic5111.44%
Asian2000.97%
Other Race1691.09%
Native American616.17%
Islander30.95%

Shelby County, Tennessee Veterans by Race

Shelby County, Tennessee Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

8.53%

Veteran Poverty Rate

26.25%

Veteran Disability Rate

Shelby County, Tennessee Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

64.5%

Labor Force Participation

59.5%

Employment Rate

7.3%

Unemployment Rate

Shelby County, Tennessee Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Shelby County, Tennessee Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Shelby County, Tennessee 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

62.4%

Born in Shelby County, Tennessee

93.19%

Native Born

6.81%

Foreign Born

4.11%

Non Citizen

2.69%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

93.19% of Shelby County, Tennessee residents were born in the United States, with 62.4% having been born in Tennessee. 4.11% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Shelby County, Tennessee Place of Birth

Sources