Dukes County, Massachusetts Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Dukes County, MA 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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A
Health Above averageAmong the top 5 healthiest counties in Massachusetts
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B
Income Around averageAmong the top 5 wealthiest counties in Massachusetts
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A
Education Above averageAmong the top 5 best educated counties in Massachusetts
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 20,933 | 7,031,620 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 42.6 | 666.0 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 2.65% | 0.53% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 51.0 | 39.0 | 37.3 |
| Households | 7,584 | 2,777,931 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Dukes County grew by 33.5% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 20,933 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Dukes County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 24.4% of residents. That is 3.3 points above Massachusetts as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 3,466 16.6% -5.0 pts
- Millennials 29–44 3,936 18.8% -3.1 pts
- Gen X 45–60 5,112 24.4% +3.3 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,806 23.0% +5.7 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 Massachusetts, 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 51.8% of the people living in Dukes County and men 48.2%.
- Women 51.8% Massachusetts 51.2%
- Men 48.2% Massachusetts 48.8%
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100% of everyone living in Dukes County
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Economy
Dukes County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $126,345 | $104,336 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 8.65% | 4.91% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 6.6% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Dukes County is about 21% higher than in Massachusetts.
Housing
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $1,481,817 | $494,523 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,277 | $1,761 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 82.1% | 62.5% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Dukes County is about 96.7 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,277 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Dukes County spend about 31 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 128 hours, about 5.3 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 15.4 | 25.6 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 30.7 | 51.1 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 128 | 213 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $3,966 | $6,603 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 21.6% | 18.6% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 4,465 | 14,741 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,682 | 2,164 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Massachusetts:
Nantucket County (12.8 min), Dukes County (15.4 min), Berkshire County (16.8 min).
Slowest:
Norfolk County (31.0 min), Suffolk County (30.4 min), Middlesex County (28.4 min).
The average commute time in Dukes County is 15 minutes, shorter than the 26 minutes in Massachusetts.
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
Dukes County has a education index of A, which means it is very educated.
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 41.1% | 42.7% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.72 | 2.44 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Massachusetts:
Middlesex County (0.5), Norfolk County (0.4), Nantucket County (0.4).
Lowest:
Hampden County (0.3), Bristol County (0.3), Berkshire County (0.3).
Health
Dukes County has a health index of A, which means it is very healthy.
| Metric | Dukes County | Massachusetts Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 81.3 | 80.5 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 10.8% | 11.8% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 13.5% | 13.9% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Massachusetts:
Middlesex County (0.8), Hampshire County (0.8), Norfolk County (0.8).
Lowest:
Hampden County (0.8), Bristol County (0.8), Worcester County (0.8).
Dukes County, MA Compared With Nearby Counties
Dukes County, MA is the smallest of the 5 counties compared here, 20,933 residents against a local median of 382,929. Where Dukes County, MA breaks from the counties next to it is median home price, sitting 228% above the local median of $451,795 at $1,481,817.
Commute tells the same story from another angle: 15.4 min against a local median of 21.0 min, 27% below it. Every measure here with a clear better direction points the same way, so Dukes County, MA is not trading one advantage for another, it reads stronger than its neighbours across the board. The counties themselves sit within $96,917 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Dukes County, MA, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Dukes County, MA has the highest median home price of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dukes County, MA | 20,933 | $126,345 #1/5 | $1,481,817 #1/5 | 15.4 min #1/5 |
| Bristol County, MA | 582,104 | $85,695 | $367,046 | 23.2 min |
| Newport County, RI | 84,657 | $103,981 | $456,969 | 17.9 min |
| Plymouth County, MA | 534,586 | $114,939 | $463,963 | 28.0 min |
| Barnstable County, MA | 231,272 | $95,861 | $446,620 | 18.8 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Dukes County, Massachusetts.
What is the population of Dukes County, Massachusetts?
About 20,933 people live in Dukes County, Massachusetts, in 7,584 households of 2.7 people on average. The median age is 51.0, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 14 years.
How densely populated is Dukes County, Massachusetts?
Averaged over its land area, Dukes County, Massachusetts has 43 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 49% of the U.S. average of 86.
How affordable is housing in Dukes County, Massachusetts?
The median home costs 11.7 times the median household income ($1,481,817 against $126,345), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $1,277 a month takes about 12% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
Is it hard to find a job in Dukes County, Massachusetts?
Unemployment in Dukes County, Massachusetts is 6.6%, well above the U.S. rate of 5.2%, so job seekers may face more competition than elsewhere.
How educated are people in Dukes County, Massachusetts?
41.1% of adults in Dukes County, Massachusetts hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 2), well above the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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