Fairfield County, CT

County

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2021 Population

956,446

US Senator

Richard Blumenthal

Democratic Party

US Senator

Chris Murphy

Democratic Party

2021 Median Age

40.7

0.245% 1-year decrease

2021 Poverty Rate

9.19%

3.03% 1-year increase

2021 Median Household Income

$101,194

3.75% 1-year growth

2021 Median Property Value

$443,100

2.33% 1-year growth

2021 Employed Population

484,841

1.7% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Fairfield County, CT 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.

88.9% of the residents in Fairfield County, CT are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Fairfield County, CT are Harris School of Business-Danbury (234 degrees awarded in 2018), Cortiva Institute-Westport (91 degrees), and Paul Mitchell the School-Danbury (56 degrees).

In 2021, the median property value in Fairfield County, CT was $443,100, and the homeownership rate was 66.6%.

Most people in Fairfield County, CT drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 31 minutes. The average car ownership in Fairfield County, CT was 2 cars per household.

Fairfield County, CT borders Litchfield County, CT, New Haven County, CT, Dutchess County, NY, Nassau County, NY, Putnam County, NY, Suffolk County, NY, and Westchester County, NY.

Photo by Chris Burke

United States Connecticut Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT

Population & Diversity

Fairfield County, CT is home to a population of 956k people, from which 88.9% are citizens. As of 2021, 22.3% of Fairfield County, CT residents were born outside of the country (214k people).

In 2021, there were 5.59 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (572k people) in Fairfield County, CT than any other race or ethnicity. There were 102k Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 78.7k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

88.9%

2021 Citizenship

89%

2020 Citizenship

As of 2021, 88.9% of Fairfield County, CT residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.2%. In 2020, the percentage of US citizens in Fairfield County, CT was 89%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

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

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Fairfield County, CT

White (Non-Hispanic)
572k ± 1.43k
Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
102k ± 1.27k
White (Hispanic)
78.7k ± 3.12k

20.5%

Hispanic Population

196k people

20.5% of the people in Fairfield County, CT are hispanic (196k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Fairfield County, CT as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the County level, so we are showing data for Connecticut.

Most Common Origin

Jamaica
43,924 ± 5,114 people
India
39,213 ± 4,835 people
Dominican Republic
30,541 ± 4,272 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Connecticut was Jamaica, the natal country of 43,924 Connecticut residents, followed by India with 39,213 and Dominican Republic with 30,541.

Foreign-Born Population

22.3%

2021 Foreign-Born Population

214k people

21.9%

2020 Foreign-Born Population

207k people

As of 2021, 22.3% of Fairfield County, CT residents (214k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2020, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Fairfield County, CT was 21.9%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
10,600 ± 670
Gulf War (2001-)
3,406 ± 497
Korea
2,594 ± 316

Fairfield County, CT has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 3.11 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Fairfield County, CT.

Economy

The economy of Fairfield County, CT employs 485k people. In 2021, the largest industries in Fairfield County, CT were Health Care & Social Assistance (68,050 people), Retail Trade (49,967 people), and Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (49,292 people), and the highest paying industries were Finance & Insurance ($144,375), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($122,651), and Management of Companies & Enterprises ($111,771).

Employment

Occupations

485k

2021 Value

± 5,634

1.7%

1 Year growth

± 1.59%

From 2020 to 2021, employment in Fairfield County, CT grew at a rate of 1.7%, from 477k employees to 485k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Fairfield County, CT, are Management Occupations (68,751 people), Sales & Related Occupations (54,077 people), and Office & Administrative Support Occupations (45,813 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Fairfield County, CT.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

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

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Connecticut (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.

Industries

Employment by Industries

485k

2021 Value

± 5,634

1.7%

1 Year growth

± 1.59%

From 2020 to 2021, employment in Fairfield County, CT grew at a rate of 1.7%, from 477k employees to 485k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Fairfield County, CT, are Health Care & Social Assistance (68,050 people), Retail Trade (49,967 people), and Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services (49,292 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Fairfield County, CT, though some of these residents may live in Fairfield County, CT and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$64,373

Median earning men ± $1,253

$43,845

Median earning women ± $819

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2021 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($168,808), Information ($97,123), and Public Administration ($92,807).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2021 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($82,826), Wholesale Trade ($79,000), and Information ($70,101).

Employment by Industry Sector

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

Y-Axis

1.78%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 1.67M people employed in Connecticut. This represents a 1.78% 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 17.2%.

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

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

2,436
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
1,646
Other Services (except Public Administration)
1,571
Construction

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$8.58M
Finance and Insurance
$5.5M
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
$4.5M
Health Care and Social Assistance

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Connecticut went to Kamala Harris with 56.4% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (41.9%), followed by Jill Stein (0.812%).

Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy are the senators currently representing the state of Connecticut. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Connecticut is currently represented by 5 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Presidential Popular Vote Over Time

Voting results are not available for Fairfield County, CT. Showing the available data for Connecticut.

2024 Election Results

Kamala Harris (56.4%)
Democratic Party
Donald J. Trump (41.9%)
Republican Party
Jill Stein (0.812%)
Green Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Connecticut went to Kamala Harris with 56.4% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (41.9%), followed by Jill Stein (0.812%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Connecticut for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

Senator Elections

US Senators from Connecticut

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Connecticut.

Richard Blumenthal

Senator from Connecticut

Assumed office on January 3, 2011

Chris Murphy

Senator from Connecticut

Assumed office on January 3, 2013

Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy are the senators currently representing Connecticut.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in Connecticut over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Education

In 2018, universities in Fairfield County, CT awarded 381 degrees. The student population of Fairfield County, CT in 2018 is skewed towards women, with 31 male students and 93 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Fairfield County, CT are White (138 and 36.2%), Hispanic or Latino (137 and 36%), Unknown (56 and 14.7%), and Black or African American (34 and 8.92%).

The largest universities in Fairfield County, CT by number of degrees awarded are Harris School of Business-Danbury (234 and 61.4%), Cortiva Institute-Westport (91 and 23.9%), and Paul Mitchell the School-Danbury (56 and 14.7%).

The most popular majors in Fairfield County, CT are Health Aide (164 and 43%), Massage Therapy (91 and 23.9%), and Phlebotamy Technician (61 and 16%).

The median tuition cost for private four year colleges is $14,520.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University

Measure

In 2017 in Fairfield County, CT, the percentage of applicants admitted was 88.4%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 44.3%. The number of students enrolled in 2018 was 124 (25% men and 75% women).

The line chart shows the evolution of the percentage of applicants admitted, admitted who enrolled or the number of students enrolled according to the option selected in the upper button.

Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2018 there were 124 students enrolled in Fairfield County, CT, 25% men and 75% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 37 records, of which 75.7% were women and 24.3% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Health Aide
164 degrees awarded
Massage Therapy
91 degrees awarded
Phlebotamy Technician
61 degrees awarded

In 2018, the most common concentation for N/A recipients in Fairfield County, CT was Health Aide with 164 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a N/A from schools in Fairfield County, CT according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

Harris School of Business-Danbury
234 degrees awarded
Cortiva Institute-Westport
91 degrees awarded
Paul Mitchell the School-Danbury
56 degrees awarded

In 2018, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Harris School of Business-Danbury with 234 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

University

In 2018, 62 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Fairfield County, CT, which is 0.194 times less than the 319 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2018, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 138 degrees mean that there were 1.01 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Hispanic or Latino, with 137 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.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Universities

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($14,520) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2017.

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($1,043) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2017.

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($1,900) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Fairfield County, CT was $443,100 in 2021, which is 1.33 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2020 and 2021 the median property value increased from $433,000 to $443,100, a 2.33% increase. The homeownership rate in Fairfield County, CT is 66.6%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Fairfield County, CT have an average commute time of 31 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Fairfield County, CT is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$443,100

Median Property Value 2021

±$5,016

$232,832

Median Property Taxes

±$2,898

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Fairfield County, CT the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Fairfield County, CT compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

66.6%

Homeownership

2021

60.9%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2021

In 2021, 66.6% of the housing units in Fairfield County, CT were occupied by their owner. This percentage declined from the previous year's rate of 66.7%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Fairfield County, CT compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

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

$101,194

Median Household Income

± $1,352

349k

Number of Households

± 4,594

In 2021, the median household income of the 349k households in Fairfield County, CT grew to $101,194 from the previous year's value of $97,539.

The following chart displays the households in Fairfield County, CT 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 $200k+ range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Fairfield County, CT is from Connecticut.

0.498

2023 Wage GINI in Connecticut

0.501

2022 Wage GINI in Connecticut

In 2023, the income inequality in Connecticut was 0.498 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.641% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Connecticut was higher than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed less evenly in Connecticut in comparison to the national average.

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

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2021

Drove Alone (67.1%)
Worked At Home (12.6%)
Carpooled (8.28%)

In 2021, 67.1% of workers in Fairfield County, CT drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (12.6%) and those who carpooled to work (8.28%).

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

31 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Fairfield County, CT have a longer commute time (31 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 6.58% of the workforce in Fairfield County, CT have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

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

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

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

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

9.19% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Fairfield County, CT (86.4k out of 940k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 25 - 34, followed by Females 35 - 44 and then Females 18 - 24.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Fairfield County, CT is White, followed by Hispanic and Other.

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

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Security

Crimes & Accidents

Indicator

In 2022, the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population was 238 in Fairfield County, CT. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator declined 59.9 per 100,000 population.

The graph shows the trend in the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population.

Health

92.3% of the population of Fairfield County, CT has health coverage, with 53% on employee plans, 16.3% on Medicaid, 11.6% on Medicare, 11% on non-group plans, and 0.44% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Fairfield County, CT see 1,092 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (1,092 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1063 patients per year, and mental health providers who see null patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.9% were men and 51.1% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

1,092 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Fairfield County, CT

Primary care physicians in Fairfield County, CT see an average of 1,092 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (1,092 patients).

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

Health Care Diversity

In 2021, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 24.1% under 18 years, 19% between 18 and 34 years, 41.3% between 35 and 64 years, and 15.5% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.9% were men and 51.1% were women.

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

Uninsured People

7.74%

Uninsured

53%

Employer Coverage

16.3%

Medicaid

11.6%

Medicare

11%

Non-Group

0.44%

Military or VA

Between 2020 and 2021, the percent of uninsured citizens in Fairfield County, CT grew by 1.42% from 7.64% to 7.74%.

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

Health Indicators

Health Outcomes

Indicator

In 2024, the number of deaths among residents under age 18 per 100,000 population was 29 in Fairfield County, CT.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Fairfield County, CT.

Health Behaviors

Indicator

In 2025, the percentage of the adult population (age 18 and older) that reports a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 (age-adjusted) was 0% in Fairfield County, CT.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Fairfield County, CT.