Fort Lauderdale, Florida Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Fort Lauderdale, FL Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
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B
Health Around average
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B
Income Around average
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B
Education Around average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 179,641 | 22,388,905 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 4948.9 | 313.4 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 0.59% | 1.47% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 43.4 | 40.2 | 37.3 |
| Households | 78,039 | 8,743,019 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Fort Lauderdale grew by 2.3% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 179,641 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Fort Lauderdale is Millennials, aged 29–44, at 23.5% of residents. That is 2.9 points above Florida as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 33,333 18.6% -0.9 pts
- Millennials 29–44 42,218 23.5% +2.9 pts
- Gen X 45–60 40,345 22.5% +1.8 pts
- Boomers 61–79 33,098 18.4% -1.2 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Florida, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 47.8% of the people living in Fort Lauderdale and men 52.2%.
- Women 47.8% Florida 51.0%
- Men 52.2% Florida 49.0%
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Economy
Fort Lauderdale has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $83,310 | $74,580 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 6.33% | 5.42% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.3% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Fort Lauderdale is about 12% higher than in Florida.
Housing
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $572,985 | $311,338 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,853 | $1,668 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 53.1% | 67.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Fort Lauderdale is about 25.8 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,853 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Fort Lauderdale spend about 45 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 188 hours, about 7.8 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 22.6 | 24.0 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 45.2 | 47.9 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 188 | 200 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,835 | $6,189 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 18.4% | 15.7% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 50,719 | 14,318 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,906 | 3,068 | 1,355 |
The average commute time in Fort Lauderdale is 23 minutes, shorter than the 24 minutes in Florida.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Fort Lauderdale has a education index of B, which means it is quite educated.
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 37.2% | 30.1% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.26 | 2.50 | 2.53 |
Health
Fort Lauderdale has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.
| Metric | Fort Lauderdale | Florida Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 77.9 | 77.2 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 17.3% | 19.5% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 18.0% | 21.3% | 19.0% |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
How big is Fort Lauderdale, Florida by population?
About 179,641 people live in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 78,039 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 43.4, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.
Is Fort Lauderdale, Florida urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Fort Lauderdale, Florida has 4,949 people per square mile, a density typical of a city. That is about 57 times the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida?
The median home costs 6.9 times the median household income ($572,985 against $83,310), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $1,853 a month takes about 27% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
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