March 25, 2025
How has Greater Philadelphia’s population changed from 2000 to 2024? Find out in today's #TrackingTuesday.
Who moves to the region, when they come, and where they locate can have different impacts on the region’s transportation network, housing supply, economic opportunities, and the natural environment. This is why DVRPC carefully tracks population change and creates plans to ensure the region is prepared to support future population growth consistent with the vision and goals in Connections 2050, the long-range plan for Greater Philadelphia.
Population growth data from the US Census Bureau’s Population Estimates Program (PEP) shows the region's population grew by 0.8%, or about 48,500, over the past year, and by 10.6%, or just over half a million people, between 2000 and 2024. Over this 24-year period, the City of Philadelphia grew by 4%, the Pennsylvania suburban counties grew by 14%, and the New Jersey counties grew by 11%. From 2000 to 2023, the latest year of municipal-level population data, the region’s growing suburbs grew by 27%, while the core cities grew by 2%.
The region’s population growth comes from a combination of natural increase (more births than deaths) and international migration. Domestically, more people move out of the region than into it each year, but this is offset by the international migration. People between 50-64 years old and those over 65 have been the two largest growth groups by age, both indicative of the region’s aging population. The region’s population between 0-20 and 35-49 have been in decline since 2000, the former an indicator of a lower birth rate. Much of the region’s growth has been driven by people with a Latine ethnicity and by those who are Asian alone, Black or African American alone, and two or more races. While the region’s white population has declined slightly since 2000, it makes up about two-thirds of the region’s total population.
The region’s population has been growing moderately overall, while becoming older and more racially and ethnically diverse. For more details on population growth trends in the region, go to the “How are we doing?” tab in the Population Growth Indicator.
Want to download the data for your own use? Under each chart, find a link to the data in DVRPC’s Data Catalog. You can also explore other indicators in Tracking Progress, DVRPC’s interactive dashboard for exploring Greater Philadelphia’s progress toward the Connections 2050 regional vision.