Fairfield County, South Carolina Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Fairfield County, SC Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
-
C
Health Below average
-
D
Income Well below average
-
F
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 20,550 | 5,295,781 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 29.0 | 165.5 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -1.40% | 1.16% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 46.0 | 40.4 | 37.3 |
| Households | 8,930 | 2,118,015 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Fairfield County declined by 12.5% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 20,550 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Fairfield County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 22.7% of residents. That is 2.6 points above South Carolina as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 3,843 18.7% -2.4 pts
- Millennials 29–44 3,628 17.7% -3.3 pts
- Gen X 45–60 4,668 22.7% +2.6 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,578 22.3% +3.8 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 South Carolina, 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 51.6% of the people living in Fairfield County and men 48.4%.
- Women 51.6% South Carolina 51.2%
- Men 48.4% South Carolina 48.8%
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Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Fairfield County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Fairfield County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $47,611 | $69,383 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 4.39% | 5.01% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.5% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Fairfield County is about 31% lower than in South Carolina.
Housing
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $580,357 | $239,609 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $937 | $1,179 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 74.6% | 71.9% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Fairfield County is about 51.6 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $937 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Fairfield County spend about 62 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 256 hours, about 10.7 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 30.8 | 22.3 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 61.5 | 44.5 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 256 | 186 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $7,946 | $5,753 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 6.3% | 11.5% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 15,200 | 9,507 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,106 | 1,499 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
South Carolina:
Greenwood County (16.5 min), Sumter County (18.2 min), Florence County (18.3 min).
Slowest:
McCormick County (33.9 min), Fairfield County (30.8 min), Chester County (30.6 min).
The average commute time in Fairfield County is 31 minutes, longer than the 22 minutes in South Carolina.
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
Fairfield County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 15.0% | 28.2% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.26 | 2.44 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
South Carolina:
Charleston County (0.4), Beaufort County (0.3), Richland County (0.3).
Lowest:
Allendale County (0.1), Marlboro County (0.2), Chesterfield County (0.2).
Health
Fairfield County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Fairfield County | South Carolina Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.2 | 75.8 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 21.7% | 19.6% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 22.5% | 21.5% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
South Carolina:
Beaufort County (0.8), Charleston County (0.8), Dorchester County (0.8).
Lowest:
Dillon County (0.8), Allendale County (0.8), Marlboro County (0.8).
Fairfield County, SC Compared With Nearby Counties
Fairfield County, SC is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 20,550 residents against a local median of 104,481. Fairfield County, SC's median home price, at $580,357, runs 159% above the $224,444 typical of the counties around it.
Commute tells the same story from another angle: 30.8 min against a local median of 22.9 min, 34% above it. Every measure here with a clear better direction points the same way, and it is the wrong way: Fairfield County, SC reads weaker than its neighbours on all of them. The counties themselves sit within $124,978 of each other on median home price, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Fairfield County, SC, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Fairfield County, SC has the highest median home price of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield County, SC | 20,550 | $47,611 #6/6 | $580,357 #1/6 | 30.8 min #6/6 |
| Chester County, SC | 32,186 | $53,740 | $161,273 | 30.6 min |
| Richland County, SC | 422,111 | $64,219 | $184,903 | 20.9 min |
| Newberry County, SC | 38,435 | $62,057 | $224,444 | 21.9 min |
| Lancaster County, SC | 104,481 | $81,073 | $286,251 | 27.9 min |
| Lexington County, SC | 304,957 | $77,064 | $260,113 | 22.9 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Fairfield County, South Carolina.
How many people live in Fairfield County, South Carolina?
About 20,550 people live in Fairfield County, South Carolina, in 8,930 households of 2.3 people on average. The median age is 46.0, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 9 years.
Is Fairfield County, South Carolina mostly urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Fairfield County, South Carolina has 29 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 34% of the U.S. average of 86.
How affordable is housing in Fairfield County, South Carolina?
The median home costs 12.2 times the median household income ($580,357 against $47,611), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $937 a month takes about 24% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How educated are people in Fairfield County, South Carolina?
15.0% of adults in Fairfield County, South Carolina hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 7), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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