Portland-South Portland, ME

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

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2024 Population

562,843

US Senator

Susan Collins

Republican Party

US Senator

Angus King

Independent Party

2024 Poverty Rate

7.65%

0.467% 1-year increase

2024 Median Household Income

$92,175

4.03% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$420,000

10.7% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

302,898

0.572% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Portland-South Portland, ME 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 Portland-South Portland, ME are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Portland-South Portland, ME are University of Southern Maine (1,748 degrees awarded in 2023), University of New England (1,488 degrees), and Southern Maine Community College (784 degrees).

In 2024, the median property value in Portland-South Portland, ME was $420,000, and the homeownership rate was 73.2%.

Most people in Portland-South Portland, ME drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 25.1 minutes. The average car ownership in Portland-South Portland, ME was 2 cars per household.

Portland-South Portland, ME borders Augusta-Waterville, ME, Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, and Lewiston-Auburn, ME.

About the photo: Old Orchard Beach pier

Photo by Hildegarde Anderson

United States Maine

Population & Diversity

Portland-South Portland, ME is home to a population of 563k people, from which 97.4% are citizens. As of 2024, 5.33% of Portland-South Portland, ME residents were born outside of the country (30k people).

In 2024, there were 33.6 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (494k people) in Portland-South Portland, ME than any other race or ethnicity. There were 14.7k Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic) and 14.6k Two Races Including Other (Non-Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

97.4%

2024 Citizenship

97.6%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 97.4% of Portland-South Portland, ME residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Portland-South Portland, ME was 97.6%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Portland-South Portland, ME compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Portland-South Portland, ME

White (Non-Hispanic)
494k ± 2.09k
Two Races Excluding Other, & Three or More Races (Non-Hispanic)
14.7k ± 1.09k
Two Races Including Other (Non-Hispanic)
14.6k ± 1.94k

2.51%

Hispanic Population

14.1k people

2.51% of the people in Portland-South Portland, ME are hispanic (14.1k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Portland-South Portland, ME as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

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

Most Common Origin

Canada
10,100 ± 2,458 people
China
2,593 ± 1,249 people
Other Africa, not specified
2,479 ± 1,221 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Maine was Canada, the natal country of 10,100 Maine residents, followed by China with 2,593 and Other Africa, not specified with 2,479.

Foreign-Born Population

5.33%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

30k people

5.19%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

28.9k people

As of 2024, 5.33% of Portland-South Portland, ME residents (30k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Portland-South Portland, ME was 5.19%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
12,663 ± 839
Gulf War (2001-)
7,251 ± 757
Gulf War (1990s)
4,615 ± 606

Portland-South Portland, ME has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.75 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Portland-South Portland, ME.

Economy

The economy of Portland-South Portland, ME employs 303k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Portland-South Portland, ME were Health Care & Social Assistance (49,051 people), Retail Trade (35,804 people), and Educational Services (30,238 people), and the highest paying industries were Management of Companies & Enterprises ($135,694), Utilities ($103,535), and Professional, Scientific, & Technical Services ($85,109).

Employment

Occupations

303k

2024 Value

± 4,421

0.572%

1 Year growth

± 2.14%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Portland-South Portland, ME grew at a rate of 0.572%, from 301k employees to 303k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Portland-South Portland, ME, are Management Occupations (39,327 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (28,980 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (28,477 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Portland-South Portland, ME.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

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

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Maine (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

303k

2024 Value

± 4,421

0.572%

1 Year growth

± 2.14%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Portland-South Portland, ME grew at a rate of 0.572%, from 301k employees to 303k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Portland-South Portland, ME, are Health Care & Social Assistance (49,051 people), Retail Trade (35,804 people), and Educational Services (30,238 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Portland-South Portland, ME, though some of these residents may live in Portland-South Portland, ME and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$61,283

Median earning men ± $781

$47,319

Median earning women ± $929

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($87,030), Public Administration ($79,609), and Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services ($78,314).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($66,397), Public Administration ($61,646), and Information ($61,394).

Employment by Industry Sector

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

Y-Axis

1.54%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 627k people employed in Maine. This represents a 1.54% 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 14.4%.

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

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

1,786
Construction
1,444
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
1,054
Other Services (except Public Administration)

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

$2.96M
Health Care and Social Assistance
$1.91M
Manufacturing
$1.58M
Finance and Insurance

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

Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Maine went to Kamala Harris with 52.4% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (45.5%), followed by Jill Stein (1.08%).

Susan Collins and Angus King are the senators currently representing the state of Maine. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Maine is currently represented by 2 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 Portland-South Portland, ME. Showing the available data for Maine.

2024 Election Results

Kamala Harris (52.4%)
Democratic Party
Donald J. Trump (45.5%)
Republican Party
Jill Stein (1.08%)
Green Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Maine went to Kamala Harris with 52.4% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (45.5%), followed by Jill Stein (1.08%).

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

Senator Elections

US Senators from Maine

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

Susan Collins

Senator from Maine

Assumed office on January 3, 1997

Angus King

Senator from Maine

Assumed office on January 3, 2013
Angus King of Maine and Bernie Sanders of Vermont join meetings of the Senate Democratic Caucus.

Susan Collins and Angus King are the senators currently representing Maine.

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 Maine over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Education

In 2023, universities in Portland-South Portland, ME awarded 6,542 degrees. The student population of Portland-South Portland, ME in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 11,808 male students and 22,115 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Portland-South Portland, ME are White (5,143 and 79.6%), Black or African American (344 and 5.32%), Hispanic or Latino (271 and 4.19%), and Unknown (265 and 4.1%).

The largest universities in Portland-South Portland, ME by number of degrees awarded are University of Southern Maine (1,748 and 26.7%), University of New England (1,488 and 22.7%), and Southern Maine Community College (784 and 12%).

The most popular majors in Portland-South Portland, ME are Registered Nursing (482 and 7.37%), General Business Administration & Management (270 and 4.13%), and Social Work (193 and 2.95%).

The median tuition costs in Portland-South Portland, ME are $41,050 for private four year colleges, and $8,316 and $24,500 respectively, for public four year colleges for in-state students and out-of-state students.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University

Measure

In 2023 in Portland-South Portland, ME, the percentage of applicants admitted was 58.4%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 14.8%. The number of students enrolled in 2023 was 33,923 (34.8% men and 65.2% 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 2023 there were 33,923 students enrolled in Portland-South Portland, ME, 34.8% men and 65.2% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 25,184 records, of which 65.7% were women and 34.3% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

General Biological Sciences
107 degrees awarded
Registered Nursing
343 degrees awarded
General Business Administration & Management
120 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Bachelors Degree recipients in Portland-South Portland, ME was General Biological Sciences with 107 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Bachelors Degree from schools in Portland-South Portland, ME according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

University of Southern Maine
1,748 degrees awarded
University of New England
1,488 degrees awarded
Southern Maine Community College
784 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was University of Southern Maine with 1,748 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

University

In 2023, 2,196 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Portland-South Portland, ME, which is 0.505 times less than the 4,346 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 5,143 degrees mean that there were 15 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 344 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 ($41,050) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 4-year or above ($2,604) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Private not-for-profit, 2-year ($1,800) 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 Portland-South Portland, ME was $420,000 in 2024, which is 1.26 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $379,500 to $420,000, a 10.7% increase. The homeownership rate in Portland-South Portland, ME is 73.2%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Portland-South Portland, ME have an average commute time of 25.1 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Portland-South Portland, ME is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$420,000

Median Property Value 2024

±$4,614

$175,751

Median Property Taxes

±$2,932

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 Portland-South Portland, ME the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Portland-South Portland, ME compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

73.2%

Homeownership

2024

63%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 73.2% of the housing units in Portland-South Portland, ME were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 73.1%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Portland-South Portland, ME 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.

$92,175

Median Household Income

± $1,533

240k

Number of Households

± 3,846

In 2024, the median household income of the 240k households in Portland-South Portland, ME grew to $92,175 from the previous year's value of $88,602.

The following chart displays the households in Portland-South Portland, ME 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 $75k - $100k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Portland-South Portland, ME is from Maine.

0.439

2023 Wage GINI in Maine

0.437

2022 Wage GINI in Maine

In 2023, the income inequality in Maine was 0.439 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.449% growth from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat less even. The GINI for Maine was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Maine in comparison to the national average.

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

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (67.3%)
Worked At Home (19.6%)
Carpooled (7.04%)

In 2024, 67.3% of workers in Portland-South Portland, ME drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (19.6%) and those who carpooled to work (7.04%).

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

25.1 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Portland-South Portland, ME have a shorter commute time (25.1 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 2.08% of the workforce in Portland-South Portland, ME have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Portland-South Portland, ME compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

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

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

7.65% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Portland-South Portland, ME (42k out of 550k 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 65 - 74 and then Females 75+.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Portland-South Portland, ME is White, followed by Two Or More and Black.

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.

Health

95.2% of the population of Portland-South Portland, ME has health coverage, with 53.4% on employee plans, 10.4% on Medicaid, 15.6% on Medicare, 14.2% on non-group plans, and 1.64% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Maine see 932 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (932 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1406 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 177 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.8% were men and 51.2% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

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

932 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Maine

Primary care physicians in Maine see an average of 932 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (932 patients).

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

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 19.3% under 18 years, 19.6% between 18 and 34 years, 40.1% between 35 and 64 years, and 21.1% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.8% were men and 51.2% were women.

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

Uninsured People

4.77%

Uninsured

53.4%

Employer Coverage

10.4%

Medicaid

15.6%

Medicare

14.2%

Non-Group

1.64%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Portland-South Portland, ME declined by 4.32% from 4.98% to 4.77%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Portland-South Portland, ME changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

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