Cookeville, Tennessee Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Cookeville, 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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B
Health Around average
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D
Income Well below average
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C
Education Below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 32,237 | 7,058,506 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 896.8 | 167.5 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 1.36% | 0.94% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 30.6 | 37.3 | 37.3 |
| Households | 13,325 | 2,819,839 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Cookeville grew by 33.3% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 32,237 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Cookeville is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 35.3% of residents. That is 13.9 points above Tennessee as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 11,379 35.3% +13.9 pts
- Millennials 29–44 5,520 17.1% -4.4 pts
- Gen X 45–60 5,154 16.0% -4.3 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,682 14.5% -2.8 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 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 50.1% of the people living in Cookeville and men 49.9%.
- Women 50.1% Tennessee 50.9%
- Men 49.9% Tennessee 49.1%
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Economy
Cookeville has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $51,936 | $69,901 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 6.61% | 5.19% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 4.2% | 4.6% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Cookeville is about 26% lower than in Tennessee.
Housing
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $124,102 | $255,786 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $904 | $1,188 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 44.9% | 66.9% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Cookeville is about 11.4 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $904 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Cookeville spend about 31 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 130 hours, about 5.4 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 15.6 | 22.4 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 31.2 | 44.8 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 130 | 187 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,033 | $5,785 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 10.5% | 12.9% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 8,174 | 9,259 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 2,142 | 1,225 | 1,355 |
The average commute time in Cookeville is 16 minutes, shorter 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
Cookeville has a education index of C, which means it is somewhat educated.
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 26.5% | 27.5% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.18 | 2.45 | 2.53 |
Health
Cookeville has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.
| Metric | Cookeville | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 75.2 | 74.8 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 16.5% | 19.5% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 20.3% | 25.1% | 19.0% |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Cookeville, Tennessee.
What is the population of Cookeville, Tennessee?
About 32,237 people live in Cookeville, Tennessee, in 13,325 households of 2.2 people on average. The median age is 30.6, so residents are younger than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 7 years.
Is Cookeville, Tennessee urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Cookeville, Tennessee has 897 people per square mile, a density typical of a mix of suburbs, small towns and farmland. That is about 10 times the U.S. average of 86.
Is Cookeville, Tennessee an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 2.4 times the median household income ($124,102 against $51,936), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $904 a month takes about 21% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
Is unemployment high in Cookeville, Tennessee?
Unemployment in Cookeville, Tennessee is only 4.2%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.
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