Washington

Population & Demographics

Washington, DC

Washington is home to 681,294 people. Explore its demographics, housing, and economy — plus how its 322,746 resident workers commute each day.

District of ColumbiaCensus ACS 5-Year · LODES 2023
681,294
people
Population

681,294 residents

Median age 34.9 · U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year (2024).

Washington population & demographics

Who lives in Washington — population, age, housing, and income, from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Population
681,294
Median age
34.9yrs
Median household income
$109,870
Median home value
$737,100
Median gross rent
$1,954/mo
Bachelor’s degree or higher
64.2%
Poverty rate
15.4%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2024 5-Year Estimates. Values shown as “—” are suppressed or unavailable for this place.

Race & ethnicity in Washington

How Washington breaks down by race and ethnicity — each bar is that group’s share of the population, from the U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year (2024).

Black41.6%
White36.5%
Hispanic or Latino11.9%
Two or more races4.9%
Asian4.3%
Some other race0.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native0.1%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander0.0%

Race across Washington

Each dot is a group of people, placed in their 2020 Census block and colored by race or ethnicity — the pattern shows where groups live across Washington.

Washington at a glance
Employed Residents
322,746
Fewer than the city’s total population
Median home–work distance
10.1mi
Straight-line, not road distance
Work Locally
68.4%
Share working within the area
Work from home
33.0%
Residents who work from home (ACS)
Top destination outside city
Arlington
Excludes local — most work in-city

These figures are for Washington proper — the Census place within its city limits — not the surrounding metro area. Metro-wide totals you’ll see elsewhere are larger because they bundle in neighboring cities and suburbs.

How Washington commutes

Every dot is a worker moving between home and job. Trace where the area pulls people in from — and where its residents head each day.

44
Commute Score

44 / 100

How short the typical commute is here, on an absolute 0–100 scale (higher is shorter). How it’s calculated.

Washington

322,746 commutes, one dot at a time

Washington

Where 322,746 workers commute

Each dot ≈ 75 workers

Where residents work

Top destinations for people who live in Washington, by worker count.

1Washington0.0 mi220,857
2Arlington5.4 mi12,931
3Bethesda7.4 mi6,129
4Tysons11.3 mi5,728
5Alexandria7.3 mi4,852
6Silver Spring6.2 mi2,367
7North Bethesda10.4 mi2,265
8Baltimore34.8 mi2,133

Who commutes in

Top origin places for workers who travel into Washington.

1Washington0.0 mi220,857
2Arlington5.4 mi32,614
3Alexandria7.3 mi19,048
4Silver Spring6.2 mi11,176
5Waldorf21.1 mi8,249
6Bethesda7.4 mi8,220
7Bowie15.0 mi6,153
8Clinton12.3 mi5,330

Top industries

The sectors that employ Washington’s workforce. Each bar is scaled to that sector’s share of all local jobs — the top sectors shown don’t add up to 100%.

Bar length = each sector’s share of all local jobs (0–100%)
PTProfessional, Scientific, and Technical Services18.7%
PAPublic Administration17.1%
HCHealth Care and Social Assistance11.1%
OSOther Services (except Public Administration)9.9%
AFAccommodation and Food Services9.8%
EDEducational Services8.4%
ADAdministrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services7.3%
INInformation3.1%
RTRetail Trade3.1%
Connectivity

Internet options for Washington

The biggest home-internet providers in the area — tap any to compare local plans.

7 providers · 1 with fiber
Speed availabilityshare of homes a plan reaches
1 Gbps~all homes
2 Gbps100%
5 Gbps
8 Gbps
See all internet providers in Washington

FindBetterInternet is a CensusFlow partner site — we link out so you can compare local plans, and CensusFlow’s Census data stays independent. Provider data is from the FCC National Broadband Map (satellite + fixed wireless excluded).