Bedford County, Tennessee Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Bedford County, TN 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 averageHealthier than 71% of counties in Tennessee
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C
Income Below average
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F
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 52,237 | 7,058,506 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 110.1 | 167.5 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 1.51% | 0.94% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 35.1 | 37.3 | 37.3 |
| Households | 19,503 | 2,819,839 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Bedford County grew by 17.9% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 52,237 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Bedford County is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 21.6% of residents. That is 0.3 points above Tennessee as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 11,293 21.6% +0.3 pts
- Millennials 29–44 11,088 21.2% -0.3 pts
- Gen X 45–60 10,370 19.9% -0.4 pts
- Boomers 61–79 8,260 15.8% -1.5 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 Tennessee, 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 50.2% of the people living in Bedford County and men 49.8%.
- Women 50.2% Tennessee 50.9%
- Men 49.8% Tennessee 49.1%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Bedford County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Bedford County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $69,118 | $69,901 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.91% | 5.19% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 4.2% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Bedford County is about 1% lower than in Tennessee.
Housing
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $303,922 | $255,786 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,051 | $1,188 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 71.9% | 66.9% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Bedford County is about 24.1 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,051 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Bedford County spend about 45 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 189 hours, about 7.9 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 22.6 | 22.4 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 45.3 | 44.8 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 189 | 187 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,846 | $5,785 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 10.5% | 12.9% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 7,845 | 9,259 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 905 | 1,225 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Tennessee:
Dyer County (15.9 min), Henry County (16.7 min), Obion County (17.1 min).
Slowest:
Cannon County (33.3 min), Union County (33.2 min), Fayette County (33.1 min).
The average commute time in Bedford County is 23 minutes, longer than the 22 minutes in Tennessee.
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
Bedford County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 16.0% | 27.5% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.64 | 2.45 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Tennessee:
Williamson County (0.4), Davidson County (0.3), Knox County (0.3).
Lowest:
Lake County (0.1), Van Buren County (0.1), Lauderdale County (0.1).
Health
Bedford County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.3 | 74.8 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 18.7% | 19.5% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 24.4% | 25.1% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Tennessee:
Williamson County (0.8), Rutherford County (0.8), Wilson County (0.8).
Lowest:
Clay County (0.8), Lake County (0.8), Hancock County (0.8).
Bedford County, TN Compared With Nearby Counties
Bedford County, TN is typical in size for this group, 52,237 residents against a local median of 47,879, so the measures below are close to a like for like comparison. Nothing separates Bedford County, TN sharply from the counties around it. Each measure below lands within 15% of the local median, close enough that the differences are within what survey sampling alone would produce.
The largest of those small differences is commute, 11% below the local median at 22.6 min against 25.5 min. Bedford County, TN has the 2nd lowest commute of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford County, TN | 52,237 | $69,118 #3/5 | $303,922 #3/5 | 22.6 min #2/5 |
| Marshall County, TN | 36,049 | $71,109 | $210,112 | 28.1 min |
| Rutherford County, TN | 357,384 | $85,930 | $382,437 | 23.6 min |
| Coffee County, TN | 59,710 | $61,155 | $487,999 | 21.4 min |
| Lincoln County, TN | 35,946 | $65,641 | $259,155 | 27.5 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Bedford County, Tennessee.
What is the population of Bedford County, Tennessee?
About 52,237 people live in Bedford County, Tennessee, in 19,503 households of 2.6 people on average. The median age is 35.1, so residents are younger than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 2 years.
Is Bedford County, Tennessee urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Bedford County, Tennessee has 110 people per square mile, a density typical of a mix of suburbs, small towns and farmland. That is close to the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Bedford County, Tennessee?
The median home costs 4.4 times the median household income ($303,922 against $69,118), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $1,051 a month takes about 18% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How educated are people in Bedford County, Tennessee?
16.0% of adults in Bedford County, Tennessee hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 6), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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