Charleston, SC

Census Place

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US Senator

Lindsey Graham

Republican Party

US Senator

Tim Scott

Republican Party

2023 Median Age

36.1

0.551% 1-year decrease

2023 Median Household Income

$90,038

7.33% 1-year growth

2023 Employed Population

82,809

1.39% 1-year growth

About

In N/A, Charleston, SC had a population of N/A people with a median age of 36.1 and a median household income of $90,038. Between N/A and N/A the population of Charleston, SC N/A from N/A to N/A, a N/A% N/A and its median household income grew from $83,891 to $90,038, a 7.33% increase.

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Charleston, SC are White (Non-Hispanic) (70.6%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (17.3%), Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (3.46%), White (Hispanic) (2.3%), and Asian (Non-Hispanic) (2.17%).

None of the households in Charleston, SC reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

97.4% of the residents in Charleston, SC are U.S. citizens.

Most people in Charleston, SC drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 23.8 minutes. The average car ownership in Charleston, SC was 2 cars per household.

About the photo: The Old Market

Photo by Harvey Craft

United States South Carolina Berkeley County, SC Charleston County, SC Charleston-North Charleston, SC Berkeley (North & East) County--Moncks Corner City PUMA, SC Berkeley (South) County--Goose Creek &portions of Charleston Cities PUMA, SC Charleston (West) County--Kiawah Island & Charleston Cities PUMA, SC Charleston (North) County--North Charleston City PUMA, SC Charleston (Northeast) County--Mount Pleasant Town PUMA, SC

Population & Diversity

Charleston, SC is home to a population of N/A people, from which 97.4% are citizens. As of 2023, 5.38% of Charleston, SC residents were born outside of the country (8.18k people).

In 2023, there were 4.09 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (107k people) in Charleston, SC than any other race or ethnicity. There were 26.2k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 5.26k Two+ (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

97.4%

2023 Citizenship

97.6%

2022 Citizenship

As of 2023, 97.4% of Charleston, SC residents were US citizens, which is approximately the same as the national average of N/A%. In 2022, the percentage of US citizens in Charleston, SC was 97.6%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Charleston, SC compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Charleston, SC

White (Non-Hispanic)
107k ± 2.16k
Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
26.2k ± 1.86k
Two+ (Non-Hispanic)
5.26k ± 802

5.89%

Hispanic Population

8.95k people

5.89% of the people in Charleston, SC are hispanic (8.95k people).

The following chart shows the 7 races represented in Charleston, SC as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the Place level, so we are showing data for South Carolina.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
58,419 ± 5,900 people
India
18,341 ± 3,319 people
Honduras
13,844 ± 2,885 people

In 2022, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of South Carolina was Mexico, the natal country of 58,419 South Carolina residents, followed by India with 18,341 and Honduras with 13,844.

Foreign-Born Population

5.38%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

8.18k people

5.33%

2022 Foreign-Born Population

7.99k people

As of 2023, 5.38% of Charleston, SC residents (8.18k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of N/A%. In 2022, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Charleston, SC was 5.33%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Charleston, SC compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Economy

The economy of Charleston, SC employs 82.8k people. The largest industries in Charleston, SC are Health Care & Social Assistance (11,596 people), Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (10,952 people), and Educational Services (8,400 people), and the highest paying industries are Management of Companies & Enterprises ($100,859), Utilities ($90,824), and Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services ($83,616).

Employment

Occupations

82.8k

2023 Value

± 2,700

1.39%

1 Year growth

± 4.51%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Charleston, SC grew at a rate of 1.39%, from 81.7k employees to 82.8k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Charleston, SC, are Management Occupations (12,084 people), Sales & Related Occupations (9,406 people), and Office & Administrative Support Occupations (6,797 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Charleston, SC.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for false.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in South Carolina (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

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Industries

Employment by Industries

82.8k

2023 Value

± 2,700

1.39%

1 Year growth

± 4.51%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Charleston, SC grew at a rate of 1.39%, from 81.7k employees to 82.8k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Charleston, SC, are Health Care & Social Assistance (11,596 people), Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (10,952 people), and Educational Services (8,400 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Charleston, SC, though some of these residents may live in Charleston, SC and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$64,138

Median earning men ± $2,573

$47,710

Median earning women ± $1,534

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2023 are Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($99,574), Wholesale Trade ($87,250), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($87,005).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2023 are Wholesale Trade ($71,150), Construction ($68,822), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($62,444).

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for South Carolina.

Y-Axis

2.54%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 2.26M people employed in South Carolina. This represents a 2.54% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 13.4%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in South Carolina.

Education

In 2023, universities in Charleston, SC awarded 4,937 degrees. The student population of Charleston, SC in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 7,797 male students and 11,675 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Charleston, SC are White (3,819 and 78.1%), followed by Black or African American (375 and 7.66%), Hispanic or Latino (324 and 6.62%), and Two or More Races (175 and 3.58%).

The median tuition costs in N/A are $19,872 for private four year colleges, and $12,518 and $32,400 respectively, for public four year colleges for in-state students and out-of-state students.

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2023 there were 19,472 students enrolled in Charleston, SC, 40% men and 60% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 14,750 records, of which 60% were women and 40% men.

Completions

Student Diversity

University

In N/A, N/A men were awarded degrees from institutions in Charleston, SC, which is N/A times N/A than the N/A female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 3,819 degrees mean that there were 10.2 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 375 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Working Population

Educational Pyramid

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for South Carolina.

Measure

In 2022, 0.83% of men over 25 years of age had not completed any academic degree (no schooling), while 0.688% of women were in the same situation.

This visualization shows the gender distribution of the population according to the academic level reached.

Educational Attainment

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for South Carolina.

Race

The most common educational levels obtained by the working population in 2022 were High School or Equivalent (1.18M), Some college (892k), and Bachelors Degree (705k).

This visualization illustrates the percentage distribution of the population according to the highest educational level reached. You can filter the data by race by using the selector above.

Housing & Living

People in Charleston, SC have an average commute time of 23.8 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Charleston, SC is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Rent vs Own

55.6%

Homeownership

2023

68.6%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2023

In 2023, 55.6% of the housing units in Charleston, SC were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 55.6%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Charleston, SC compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Income by Location

Use the dropdown to filter by race/ethnicity.

The following map shows all of the places in Charleston, SC colored by their Median Household Income (N/A).

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Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$90,038

Median Household Income

± $4,110

66.4k

Number of Households

± 2,286

In 2023, the median household income of the 66.4k households in Charleston, SC grew to $90,038 from the previous year's value of $83,891.

The following chart displays the households in Charleston, SC distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the N/A range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Charleston, SC is from South Carolina.

0.464

2022 Wage GINI in South Carolina

0.463

2021 Wage GINI in South Carolina

In 2022, the income inequality in South Carolina was 0.464 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.334% growth from 2021 to 2022, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat less even. The GINI for South Carolina was lower than than the national average of 1. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in South Carolina in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in South Carolina across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2023

Drove Alone (68.1%)
Worked At Home (17.6%)
Carpooled (6.53%)

In 2023, 68.1% of workers in Charleston, SC drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (17.6%) and those who carpooled to work (6.53%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

23.8 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Charleston, SC have a shorter commute time (23.8 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.6 minutes). Additionally, N/A% of the workforce in Charleston, SC have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Charleston, SC compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Charleston, SC distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Charleston, SC have 2 cars.

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

N/A% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Charleston, SC (N/A out of N/A people) live below the poverty line, a number that is approximately the same as the national average of N/A%. The largest demographic living in poverty are N/A N/A, followed by N/A N/A and then N/A N/A.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Charleston, SC is White, followed by Black and Hispanic.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A

In N/A, N/A had the highest N/A in the nation, at N/A. N/A has the second highest (N/A), followed by N/A (N/A).

The following map shows the N/A by state over multiple years.

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Health

93.6% of the population of Charleston, SC has health coverage, with 54.1% on employee plans, 8.59% on Medicaid, 11.5% on Medicare, 17.3% on non-group plans, and 1.94% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Charleston County, SC see 801 patients per year on average, which represents a 0.125% increase from the previous year (800 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 883 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 245 patients per year.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

Data is only available at the country level. Showing data for Charleston County, SC.

801 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Charleston County, SC

Primary care physicians in Charleston County, SC see an average of 801 patients per year. This represents a 0.125% increase from the previous year (800 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Charleston County, SC in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In N/A, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in .

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 46.1% were men and 53.9% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

6.44%

Uninsured

54.1%

Employer Coverage

8.59%

Medicaid

11.5%

Medicare

17.3%

Non-Group

1.94%

Military or VA

Between 2022 and 2023, the percent of uninsured citizens in Charleston, SC declined by 1.4% from 6.53% to 6.44%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Charleston, SC changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Keep Exploring

South Carolina

State

Charleston-North Charleston, SC

MSA

Charleston County, SC