Plainfield, New Jersey Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Plainfield, NJ 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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C
Health Below average
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D
Income Well below average
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F
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 55,158 | 9,334,304 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 9241.4 | 1071.4 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 1.23% | 0.59% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 30.3 | 40.2 | 37.3 |
| Households | 15,882 | 3,503,323 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Plainfield grew by 19.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 55,158 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Plainfield is Millennials, aged 29–44, at 24.0% of residents. That is 2.2 points above New Jersey as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 12,339 22.4% +2.2 pts
- Millennials 29–44 13,251 24.0% +2.2 pts
- Gen X 45–60 10,541 19.1% -2.3 pts
- Boomers 61–79 6,595 12.0% -4.9 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 New Jersey, 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 50.0% of the people living in Plainfield and men 50.0%.
- Women 50.0% New Jersey 50.9%
- Men 50.0% New Jersey 49.1%
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Economy
Plainfield has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $85,453 | $103,817 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.57% | 4.37% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 8.9% | 6.3% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Plainfield is about 18% lower than in New Jersey.
Housing
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $436,930 | $352,792 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,767 | $1,719 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 44.8% | 63.8% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Plainfield is about 20.6 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,767 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Plainfield spend about 56 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 231 hours, about 9.6 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 27.8 | 26.2 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 55.5 | 52.4 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 231 | 218 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $7,172 | $6,764 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 6.8% | 16.8% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 13,329 | 14,317 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 2,988 | 2,109 | 1,355 |
The average commute time in Plainfield is 28 minutes, longer than the 26 minutes in New Jersey.
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
Plainfield has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 20.6% | 39.6% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 3.41 | 2.61 | 2.53 |
Health
Plainfield has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Plainfield | New Jersey Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 78.5 | 79.4 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 20.5% | 12.9% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 17.6% | 14.2% | 19.0% |
Plainfield, NJ Compared With Nearby Cities
How Plainfield, NJ compares with the 2 cities closest to it.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plainfield, NJ | 55,158 | $85,453 #3/3 | $436,930 #2/3 | 27.8 min #2/3 |
| North Plainfield, NJ | 22,787 | $86,051 | $350,000 | 27.9 min |
| South Plainfield, NJ | 24,492 | $132,460 | $756,250 | 27.4 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Plainfield, New Jersey.
How many people live in Plainfield, New Jersey?
About 55,158 people live in Plainfield, New Jersey, in 15,882 households of 3.4 people on average. The median age is 30.3, so residents are younger than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 7 years.
Is Plainfield, New Jersey mostly urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Plainfield, New Jersey has 9,241 people per square mile, a density typical of a city. That is about 107 times the U.S. average of 86.
How affordable is housing in Plainfield, New Jersey?
The median home costs 5.1 times the median household income ($436,930 against $85,453), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $1,767 a month takes about 25% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
Is unemployment high in Plainfield, New Jersey?
Unemployment in Plainfield, New Jersey is 8.9%, well above the U.S. rate of 5.2%, so job seekers may face more competition than elsewhere.
How educated are people in Plainfield, New Jersey?
20.6% of adults in Plainfield, New Jersey hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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