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List of states and territories of the United States by population density

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Map of states shaded by population density (2020)

This is a list of the 50 states, the 5 territories, and the District of Columbia of the United States of America by population density, population size, and land area. It also includes a sortable table of density by states, territories, divisions, and regions by population rank and land area, and a sortable table for density by states, divisions, regions, and territories in square miles and square kilometers.

The population density of the United States is lower than that of many other countries because of the United States' large land area. There are large, sparsely populated areas in parts of the US, like the east-to-west stretch extending from the outskirts of Seattle all the way to Minneapolis, or the north-to-south portion from northern Montana to southern New Mexico, excluding Denver and Albuquerque.[citation needed] For comparison, the population density of the U.S. is 1/15 that of South Korea and 1/12 that of India and the Netherlands. On the other hand, it is over 8 times higher than that of Canada and over 9 times higher than that of Australia.[1]

States and territories by population density

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Population density is defined as the population divided by land area. Data are from the US Census unless otherwise specified. Population data are for the year 2023[2] and area data are for the year 2010.[3] Some population estimates for territories are from the United Nations Commission on Population and Development.[4]

States and territories by density, population and area
Location Density Population Land area
/mi2 /km2 mi2 km2
District of Columbia 11,131 4,297 678,972 61 158
New Jersey 1,263 488 9,290,841 7,354 19,047
Rhode Island 1,060 409 1,095,962 1,034 2,678
Puerto Rico 936 361 3,205,691 3,424 8,868
Massachusetts 898 347 7,001,399 7,800 20,202
Guam[4] 824 319 172,952 210 543
Connecticut 747 288 3,617,176 4,842 12,542
U.S. Virgin Islands[4] 737 284 98,750 134 348
Maryland 637 246 6,180,253 9,707 25,142
American Samoa[4] 578 222 43,915 76 198
Delaware 529 204 1,031,890 1,949 5,047
Florida 422 163 22,610,726 53,625 138,887
New York 415 160 19,571,216 47,126 122,057
Pennsylvania 290 112 12,961,683 44,743 115,883
Ohio 288 111 11,785,935 40,861 105,829
Northern Mariana Islands[4] 274 106 49,796 182 472
California 250 97 38,965,193 155,779 403,466
Illinois 226 87 12,549,689 55,519 143,793
Hawaii 223 86 1,435,138 6,423 16,635
North Carolina 223 86 10,835,491 48,618 125,920
Virginia 221 85 8,715,698 39,490 102,279
Georgia 192 74 11,029,227 57,513 148,959
Indiana 192 74 6,862,199 35,826 92,789
South Carolina 179 69 5,373,555 30,061 77,857
Michigan 178 69 10,037,261 56,539 146,435
Tennessee 173 67 7,126,489 41,235 106,798
New Hampshire 157 60 1,402,054 8,953 23,187
Washington 118 45 7,812,880 66,456 172,119
Texas 117 45 30,503,301 261,232 676,587
Kentucky 115 44 4,526,154 39,486 102,269
Wisconsin 109 42 5,910,955 54,158 140,268
Louisiana 106 41 4,573,749 43,204 111,898
Alabama 101 39 5,108,468 50,645 131,171
Missouri 90 35 6,196,156 68,742 178,040
West Virginia 74 28 1,770,071 24,038 62,259
Minnesota 72 28 5,737,915 79,627 206,232
Vermont 70 27 647,464 9,217 23,871
Arizona 65 25 7,431,344 113,594 294,207
Mississippi 63 24 2,939,690 46,923 121,531
Oklahoma 59 23 4,053,824 68,595 177,660
Arkansas 59 23 3,067,732 52,035 134,771
Iowa 57 22 3,207,004 55,857 144,669
Colorado 57 22 5,877,610 103,642 268,431
Maine 45 17 1,395,722 30,843 79,883
Oregon 44 17 4,233,358 95,988 248,608
Utah 42 16 3,417,734 82,170 212,818
Kansas 36 14 2,940,546 81,759 211,754
Nevada 29 11 3,194,176 109,781 284,332
Nebraska 26 10 1,978,379 76,824 198,974
Idaho 24 9.2 1,964,726 82,643 214,045
New Mexico 17 6.7 2,114,371 121,298 314,161
South Dakota 12 4.7 919,318 75,811 196,350
North Dakota 11 4.4 783,926 69,001 178,711
Montana 7.8 3.0 1,132,812 145,546 376,962
Wyoming 6.0 2.3 584,057 97,093 251,470
Alaska 1.3 0.50 733,406 570,641 1,477,953
 Contiguous US 113 43 332,746,351 2,954,843 7,653,006
 50 States 95 37 334,235,923 3,531,846 9,147,436
 50 States and DC 95 37 334,914,895 3,531,907 9,147,594
 United States 96 37 338,485,999 3,531,905 9,147,593
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Gallery of U.S. States
  • New Jersey is the most densely populated state.
    New Jersey is the most densely populated state.
  • New York is home to the most populous city in the country, and ranks 8th among the states in density.
    New York is home to the most populous city in the country, and ranks 8th among the states in density.
  • Despite a small population, Vermont has fairly average population density because of its small area.
    Despite a small population, Vermont has fairly average population density because of its small area.
  • Idaho's population has increased rapidly in recent decades, but its population density is lower than other states.
    Idaho's population has increased rapidly in recent decades, but its population density is lower than other states.
  • About half of the population of Alaska lives in the Anchorage metropolitan area.
    About half of the population of Alaska lives in the Anchorage metropolitan area.
  • Puerto Rico is the fourth most densely populated of states and possessions of the U.S.
    Puerto Rico is the fourth most densely populated of states and possessions of the U.S.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ United Nations World Population Prospects Archived December 29, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for the United States". census.gov. December 12, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "State Area Measurements and Internal Point Coordinates". census.gov. December 16, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e Population data: "Total population by sex". un.org. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
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