County profile

Fayette County

Pennsylvania · ACS 2020–2024

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Latest estimates

At a glance

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Total population
125,997
Median household income
$58,236
People below poverty
16.8%
Median home value
$143,200

Income

The median income of households in Fayette County, Pennsylvania was $58,236. An estimated 7.1% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 4.3% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 7.1
$10,000 to $14,999 6.4
$15,000 to $24,999 9.3
$25,000 to $34,999 8.8
$35,000 to $49,999 12.2
$50,000 to $74,999 17.3
$75,000 to $99,999 13.2
$100,000 to $149,999 15.1
$150,000 to $199,999 6.4
$200,000 or more 4.3

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 61236
Female 44737

An estimated 66.3% of households received earnings. An estimated 41% of households received Social Security and an estimated 29.4 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $22,994. These income sources are not mutually exclusive; that is, some households received income from more than one source.

Proportion of Households with Various Income Sources in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 66.3
Social Security 41
Retirement income 29.4
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 8.9
Cash public assistance income 4.6

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 16.8 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 22.2% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 13.7% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 16.3% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 16.8
Children under 18 years below poverty 22.2
People 65 years old and over below poverty 13.7
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 16.3

In 2020-2024, 23.5 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 34.9% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 45.2% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 24.1% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024, 95.4% had health insurance coverage and 4.6% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 62.3% and public coverage was 50.3%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 3.2%.


In 2020-2024, Fayette County, Pennsylvania had a total population of 125,997 - 62,766 (49.8%) females and 63,231 (50.2%) males. The median age was 45.4 years. An estimated 19.2% of the population was under 18 years, 28.4% was 19 to 44 years, 27.9% was 45 to 64 years, and 22.7 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 3344 2629
5 to 9 3370 3235
10 to 14 3735 3470
15 to 19 3537 3208
20 to 24 3367 3143
25 to 29 3999 3413
30 to 34 3981 3590
35 to 39 3803 3358
40 to 44 3571 3546
45 to 49 3838 3811
50 to 54 4623 4235
55 to 59 4639 4604
60 to 64 4546 4845
65 to 69 4497 5078
70 to 74 3659 3739
75 to 79 2081 2658
80 to 84 1416 2036
85 and over 1225 2168

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 89.5% were White; 3.9% were Black or African American; 8% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 0.5% were Asian; 1.6% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 5.4% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 1.4% of the people in Fayette County, Pennsylvania were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 89.1% of the people in Fayette County, Pennsylvania were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 55,182 households in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. The average household size was 2.2 people.

Married-couple households made up 44% of the households in Fayette County, Pennsylvania while cohabiting couple households made up 7.6% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 28.8% of all households, while 19.6% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 15.3% of households were male householders living alone, and 17.8% were female householders living alone, for a total of 33.1% of all households.

In Fayette County, Pennsylvania, 24.8% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 37.8% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 44
Cohabiting Couples 7.6
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
19.6
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
28.8

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 48.6% of males and 47.4% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 34.8 25.4
Now married, except separated 48.6 47.4
Separated 1.5 1.5
Widowed 3.8 12.8
Divorced 11.3 12.8

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Fayette County, Pennsylvania, 2,755 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 57.6% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 98.7% of the people living in Fayette County, Pennsylvania were U.S. natives. 82.3% of the Fayette County, Pennsylvania population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 1.3% of Fayette County, Pennsylvania residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 50.7% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 56 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Fayette County, Pennsylvania come from different parts of the world. The bar graph below displays the percentage of foreign-born from each world region of birth in 2020-2024 for Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 21.6
Asia 28.3
Europe 23
Africa 25
Northern America 1.4
Oceania 0.7

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024, 2.4 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 0.9% of people at least five years old; 0.6% reported that they did not speak English "very well."

Percentage of the Population 5 years and over who Speak a Language other than English in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 0.9
Other Indo-European languages 1.1
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 0.3
Other languages 0.1

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 91.9 % of the people at least one year old living in Fayette County, Pennsylvania were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 91.9
Different house, same county 5.1
Different county, same state 1.9
Different state 0.9
Abroad 0.3

Education

In 2020-2024, 90.2 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 19.1% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 9.8% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Fayette County, Pennsylvania was 22,678 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 1,169 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 17,769. College or graduate school enrollment was 3,740.

Educational Attainment of People in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 9.8
High school diploma or equivalency 47.1
Some college, no degree 14.2
Associate's degree 9.7
Bachelor's degree 12.6
Graduate or professional degree 6.5

Disability

In Fayette County, Pennsylvania, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 20.5 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 7.2% of people under 18 years old, to 17.9% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 39% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Fayette County, Pennsylvania, 50.6 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 46% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 84.1% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 11% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 4.4 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 44,525 84.1
Federal, state, or local government workers 5,838 11
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 2,351 4.4

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in Fayette County, Pennsylvania worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 3.2
Construction 8.4
Manufacturing 10.2
Wholesale trade 1.9
Retail trade 12.6
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 8.7
Information 0.9
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 2.9
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 6.7
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 26.4
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 9.8
Other Services, except public administration 4.3
Public administration 3.8

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 16,501 31.2
Service occupations 10,305 19.5
Sales and office occupations 9,991 18.9
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 6,736 12.7
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 9,396 17.8

Commuting to Work

An estimated 80.5% of Fayette County, Pennsylvania workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 7.3% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 26 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 80.5
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 7.3
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 1
Walked 2.2
Other means 2
Worked from home 7.1

In 2020-2024, Fayette County, Pennsylvania had a total of 62,158 housing units. Of these housing units, 77.2% were single-family houses either not attached to any other structure or attached to one or more structures (commonly referred to as "townhouses" or "row houses"). 12.6% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 10.2% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 77.2
Apartments in multi-unit structures 12.6
Mobile homes 10.2
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

3.8% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 31.4% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Fayette County, Pennsylvania was 5.9 rooms, and of these housing units 60.8% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Fayette County, Pennsylvania had 55,182 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 6,976 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 72.4% while renters occupied 27.6%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.3 and in renter-occupied houses it was 1.94.

4% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 23.1% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 9% and another 20.6% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in Fayette County, Pennsylvania:

House Heating Fuel Used in Fayette County, Pennsylvania in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 49
Electricity 21.3
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 24.5
All other fuels 4.9
No fuel used 0.4

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Fayette County, Pennsylvania was $143,200.

Of the owner-occupied households, 46.9 % had a mortgage. 53.1% owned their houses "free and clear," that is without a primary mortgage or loan on the house. The median monthly housing costs for owners with a mortgage was $1,239 and for owners without a mortgage it was $512.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Fayette County, Pennsylvania was $793. Gross rent includes the monthly contract rent and any monthly payments made for electricity, gas, water and sewer, and any other fuels to heat the house.