Short answer: The Census Bureau's ACS 2020-2024 estimates count 201,875 people in the City of Tallahassee and 297,542 in Leon County. City residents have a median age of 28.2 and a median household income of $57,409; 59.4 percent of city households rent. Leon County government's own statistics list 299,130 residents and a median age of 27. Four guides go deeper: students, ZIP codes, the metro area and city versus county.
Last verified: October 19, 2026, against the sources listed at the end of this page.
How many people live in Tallahassee, and how does that compare with Leon County?
The City of Tallahassee holds most of Leon County's residents: the ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates count 201,875 people in the city (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, City of Tallahassee) and 297,542 in the county as a whole (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, Leon County).
Leon County government publishes its own figure on its About page: a population of 299,130, of whom 33 percent live in unincorporated areas and 67 percent within city limits, across 702 square miles (Leon County, About Leon County). The county figure and the ACS county estimate differ by 1,588 people; the county page does not name the vintage of its number, so both are listed here. The city itself covers 102.565 square miles of land and 2.913 square miles of water in the Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer.
| Measure | City of Tallahassee | Leon County | Census table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total population | 201,875 | 297,542 | DP05 |
| Median age | 28.2 years | 32.0 years | DP05 |
| Median household income | $57,409 | $66,287 | DP03 |
| People below poverty level | 23.6 percent | 18.7 percent | DP03 |
| Renter occupied homes | 59.4 percent | 47.4 percent | DP04 |
| Median owner home value | $294,400 | $301,800 | DP04 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher, age 25 and over | 51.3 percent | 48.9 percent | DP02 |
Table sources: ACS 2020-2024 DP05, City of Tallahassee, ACS 2020-2024 DP05, Leon County, ACS 2020-2024 DP03, City of Tallahassee, ACS 2020-2024 DP03, Leon County, ACS 2020-2024 DP04, City of Tallahassee, ACS 2020-2024 DP04, Leon County, ACS 2020-2024 DP02, City of Tallahassee and ACS 2020-2024 DP02, Leon County. The county column includes the city; the Tallahassee versus Leon County guide separates the two.
How young is Tallahassee, and how many residents are in college?
Most Tallahassee residents enrolled in school are in college: of the 78,412 city residents aged 3 and over who are enrolled in school, 64.6 percent are in college or graduate school (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, City of Tallahassee).
The 20 to 24 age band is the city's largest, at 39,087 people, against 33,478 residents under 18 and 23,684 aged 65 and over (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, City of Tallahassee). The city counts 86.5 males per 100 females. Countywide the college share of enrolled residents falls to 55.6 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, Leon County) and the median age rises to 32.0 years (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, Leon County).
Leon County's About page gives a median age of 27 for the county (Leon County, About Leon County), which is lower than both the ACS county figure of 32.0 and the ACS city figure of 28.2. The two sources are published side by side here without a verdict on which is current.
The universities publish their own enrollment counts, which are not Census figures and are not limited to Tallahassee residents: Florida State University lists 46,184 students from every Florida county and 130 countries, and Florida A&M University says it enrolls nearly 10,000 students. The college student population guide compares those campus counts with the Census enrollment tables.
What do Tallahassee households earn, and how common is poverty?
A typical Tallahassee household earns less than a typical Leon County household: median household income is $57,409 in the city (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, City of Tallahassee) and $66,287 in the county (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, Leon County).
Mean household income in the city is $84,311 and per capita income is $36,567. The ACS counts 23.6 percent of all city residents and 12.4 percent of city families below the poverty level (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, City of Tallahassee). For the county, the person rate is 18.7 percent and the family rate 10.1 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, Leon County).
Among employed city residents, 28.4 percent work in educational services, health care and social assistance, 13.3 percent in professional, scientific and management services, 12.9 percent in public administration and 12.4 percent in arts, entertainment, accommodation and food services (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, City of Tallahassee). Public administration is a slightly larger share countywide, at 13.9 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, Leon County). City labor force participation is 66.3 percent, the ACS unemployment rate is 6.4 percent, 7.8 percent of the civilian noninstitutionalized population has no health insurance coverage, and the mean commute is 19.1 minutes (ACS 2020-2024 DP03, City of Tallahassee).
Do most Tallahassee households rent or own?
Most Tallahassee households rent: 50,650 of the city's 85,311 occupied homes, or 59.4 percent, are renter occupied (ACS 2020-2024 DP04, City of Tallahassee).
The city has 97,245 housing units, of which 12.3 percent are vacant, a median owner home value of $294,400 and a median gross rent of $1,293 (ACS 2020-2024 DP04, City of Tallahassee). Leon County as a whole is closer to an even split, with 52.6 percent of occupied homes owner occupied, a median value of $301,800 and a median gross rent of $1,291 (ACS 2020-2024 DP04, Leon County). Households are small: 2.16 people on average in the city and 2.27 in the county (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, City of Tallahassee; ACS 2020-2024 DP02, Leon County).
The Tallahassee median gross rent and the Leon County median gross rent are $2 apart in the ACS. The population by ZIP code guide breaks age, income and home values down by ZIP code.
What is the racial, ethnic and birthplace makeup of Tallahassee?
In the ACS 2020-2024 estimates, 50.2 percent of Tallahassee residents report White alone and 34.4 percent Black or African American alone, compared with 55.3 and 30.4 percent across Leon County (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, City of Tallahassee; ACS 2020-2024 DP05, Leon County).
Asian residents are 4.3 percent of the city, 8.7 percent report two or more races, and 8.9 percent are Hispanic or Latino of any race; residents who are White alone and not Hispanic make up 47.8 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, City of Tallahassee). In Leon County the Hispanic or Latino share is 8.2 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP05, Leon County).
Most residents were born in Florida or another state. In the city, 56.8 percent were born in Florida, 32.8 percent in a different state and 8.2 percent are foreign born; of the 16,582 foreign born residents, 46.4 percent were born in Asia and 51.6 percent are naturalized U.S. citizens (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, City of Tallahassee). The county foreign born share is 7.4 percent (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, Leon County).
Which Tallahassee demographics guide answers which question?
Four Tallahassee demographics guides each take one narrower question, listed below by the question each answers.
| Question | Guide |
|---|---|
| How many FSU, FAMU and TSC students live in Tallahassee, and how does the Census count them? | Tallahassee college student population guide |
| How do age, income and home values change from one ZIP code to the next? | Tallahassee population by ZIP code guide |
| Which four counties make up the Tallahassee metro area? | Tallahassee metropolitan area guide |
| How different is life inside the city limits from unincorporated Leon County? | Tallahassee vs. Leon County guide |
For figures not covered there, the Census Bureau tables cited on this page are the primary record, and Leon County's own statistics box is on the county's About page (Leon County, About Leon County).
Last verified: October 18, 2026, by pulling the city and county ACS 2020-2024 DP02, DP03, DP04 and DP05 profiles from the Census Bureau, rereading the Leon County statistics box, the 2024 Gazetteer place row, and the enrollment lines on the FSU and FAMU About pages.
Frequently asked questions
What is the population of Tallahassee?
The Census Bureau's ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates count 201,875 people in the City of Tallahassee. Leon County as a whole has 297,542 in the same survey.
What is the median age in Tallahassee?
The ACS 2020-2024 median age is 28.2 years in the city and 32.0 years in Leon County. Leon County government lists a county median age of 27 on its About page.
What is the median household income in Tallahassee?
Median household income is $57,409 in the City of Tallahassee and $66,287 in Leon County, in 2024 inflation adjusted dollars, per the ACS 2020-2024 estimates.
Do more people rent or own in Tallahassee?
More rent. In the ACS 2020-2024 estimates, 59.4 percent of occupied homes in the city are renter occupied; across Leon County the renter share is 47.4 percent.
How much of Leon County lives inside Tallahassee?
Leon County's About page says 67 percent of county residents live within city limits and 33 percent in unincorporated areas.
Sources
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP05, Tallahassee city, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP05&g=160XX00US1270600 Used for: population, sex ratio, age groups, median age, race, Hispanic origin
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP05, Leon County, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP05&g=050XX00US12073 Used for: county population, median age, race, Hispanic origin
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP03, Tallahassee city, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP03&g=160XX00US1270600 Used for: income, poverty, labor force, industry shares, commute, health insurance coverage
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP03, Leon County, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP03&g=050XX00US12073 Used for: county income, poverty, industry shares
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP04, Tallahassee city, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP04&g=160XX00US1270600 Used for: housing units, vacancy, tenure, median value, median rent
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP04, Leon County, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP04&g=050XX00US12073 Used for: county housing units, tenure, median value, median rent
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP02, Tallahassee city, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP02&g=160XX00US1270600 Used for: school enrollment, educational attainment, household size, place of birth
- ACS 2020-2024 5-year DP02, Leon County, U.S. Census Bureau https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=ACSDP5Y2024.DP02&g=050XX00US12073 Used for: county school enrollment, attainment, household size, place of birth
- About Leon County, Leon County Board of County Commissioners https://cms.leoncountyfl.gov/Government/County-Commission/About-Leon-County Used for: county statistics box: population 299,130, 67 percent within city limits, 702 square miles, median age 27, established 1824
- 2024 Gazetteer, Florida places, U.S. Census Bureau https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_gaz_place_12.txt Used for: Tallahassee city land and water area
- About FSU, Florida State University https://www.fsu.edu/about/ Used for: FSU own fact: 46,184 students, founded 1851
- About FAMU, Florida A&M University https://www.famu.edu/about-famu/index.php Used for: FAMU own fact: nearly 10,000 students, founded October 3, 1887
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