Fort Wayne, Indiana population is 275,203 as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimate), ranking #82 nationally and #2 in Indiana. Cost of living runs 7.4% below the U.S. average (BEA RPP 2024); a family of four needs roughly $54,813/yr to break even (2025 modeled). This profile draws on 13 federal datasets covering population, housing, income, employment, climate, and risk.
At a glance.
2025 population
275,203
+2,173 in the last year
Top 1% of 19,483 U.S. cities
Census Vintage 2025
Cost of living
RPP 92.6
−7.4% vs US
Fort Wayne, IN metro · BEA 2024
Family-of-4 budget
$54,813/yr
−32% vs US
Modeled 2025 · federal sources
Median HH income
$61,422
−21% vs US
ACS 2020–2024 5-yr
Median home value
$188,900
−38% vs US
ACS 2020–2024 5-yr
2-BR fair-market rent
$1,113/mo
HUD FY2026 · 40th pct
Avg July high
84°F
NOAA 1991–2020
Gigabit broadband
72%
ISP-reported, FCC BDC
How many people live in Fort Wayne?
275,203 people live in Fort Wayne as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025), the #82 largest U.S. city.
Source detail
2025 population
Source agency
U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division
Dataset
Census PEP
Vintage / period
Vintage 2025 (Jul 1, 2025)
Native geography
Census PEP subcounty place records for the included city universe.
Transformation
Copied from POPESTIMATE2025, joined by Census GEOID, and used for ranks, filters, and city pages.
Known limit: Annual estimate, not a decennial count; each new PEP vintage can revise the prior series.
Population grew 4.3% from the April 2020 base to mid-2025.
Vintage 2025 · annual estimates
Recent history (V2025 series, 2020 base → 2025).
2020 base: 263,918 → 2025: 275,203 (+4.3%)
Year
Population
Reference date
2020 base
263,918
April 1, 2020
2020
264,377
July 1, 2020
2021
266,262
July 1, 2021
2022
268,123
July 1, 2022
2023
270,181
July 1, 2023
2024
273,030
July 1, 2024
2025
275,203
July 1, 2025
Earlier history (2010–2019, prior Census vintage)
These figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Vintage 2019 release — a separate, earlier methodology. They’re shown here as historical context only; the 2010 and 2019 values aren’t directly comparable to the 2020–2025 series above.
Population grew 6.6% from 2010 to 2019 (V2019 — see seam note below).
Fort Wayne is the #82 largest of 19,483 U.S. cities and #2 in Indiana.
▸ Show the analyst detail (9 rows)
Measure
Value
Note
2020 base
263,918
April 1, 2020 census base
5-yr change
+11,285
2020 base → 2025; within V2025
5-yr change %
+4.3%
within V2025 only
1-yr change
+2,173
2024 → 2025 estimate
1-yr change %
+0.8%
within V2025 only
Density
2,462
people per sq mi, land only
Land area
111.8
sq mi (2025 Gazetteer)
U.S. rank by population
#82
of 19,483 cities
State rank by population
#2
of 566 in Indiana
What is the median household income in Fort Wayne?
Median household income is 21% below the U.S. median ($61,422 vs $77,719); 16.0% live in poverty — 3.5 points above the 12.5% U.S. rate.
Median household income$61,422
US
Fort Wayne: $61,422 — 21% below the US median of $77,719.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS income data
Fort Wayne
$61,422
United States
$77,719
Income and poverty estimates for Fort Wayne from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year estimates (window 2020–2024). Every figure is shown with its 90% margin of error (MOE). Cells where the ± margin exceeds half the estimate are flagged "low precision." See methodology §12.
Measure
Estimate
± margin / note
Median household income
61,422-21.0% vs US
±1,204
Per capita income
33,812-21.9% vs US
±876
Population in poverty
16.0%
share of population for whom poverty status is determined
Median home value is 38% below the U.S. median ($188,900 vs $303,400); median rent is 26% below ($999 vs $1,348); price-to-income ratio is 3.1×, making it 1.3× as affordable as the typical U.S. city (3.9×).
Median home value$188,900
US
Fort Wayne: $188,900 — 38% below the US median of $303,400.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS home-value data
HUD 2-BR fair-market rent$1,113/mo
US
Fort Wayne: $1,113/mo — 3% above the US median of $1,077/mo.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with a HUD Fair Market Rent
Poverty (Census SAIPE 2024, model-based), unemployment (BLS LAUS 2024 annual averages), and remote-work share (ACS 2020–2024) for Fort Wayne. Numbers are labeled at their native grain — place-grain when BLS publishes it, otherwise per-county. We do not compute population-weighted county averages. See methodology §13.
Measure
Value
Grain
Unemployment rate (annual avg)
4.1%
Fort Wayne (BLS sub-state LAUS)
Civilian labor force
135,975
2024 annual avg
Worked from home
9.0%-35.7% vs US
share of workers 16+ commuting from home · U.S. median: 14% · ACS
County context — Fort Wayne sits in Allen County:
County
Poverty rate
Median HH income
Unemployment
Allen County
12.3%
$70,889
4.0%
Top industries by private employment — NAICS supersectors rolled up from Fort Wayne's linked county in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW, 2024 annual averages). See methodology §11.
#
Industry (NAICS supersector)
Private employment
Avg weekly wage
#1
Health care and social assistance (62)
38,417
$1,305 / wk
#2
Manufacturing (31-33)
29,147
$1,376 / wk
#3
Retail trade (44-45)
21,582
$775 / wk
#4
Accommodation and food services (72)
17,279
$440 / wk
#5
Construction (23)
11,421
$1,529 / wk
What workers earn in the Fort Wayne, IN metro — top occupations by employment plus six curated benchmarks (registered nurse, software developer, elementary teacher, general manager, retail salesperson, truck driver). Wages are metro-area medians from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). See methodology §25.
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators is the largest tracked occupation in the Fort Wayne, IN metro (8,260 jobs, median $48,120/yr).
▸ Show all 13 occupations
Occupation
Employment
Median annual
Median hourly
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators
8,260
$48,120
$23.13
Fast Food and Counter Workers
6,900
$28,360
$13.63
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
5,800
$37,860
$18.20
Home Health and Personal Care Aides
4,840
$35,090
$16.87
Stockers and Order Fillers
4,590
$35,690
$17.16
Cashiers
4,440
$29,590
$14.23
Office Clerks, General
4,250
$45,140
$21.70
Registered Nurses · benchmark
6,450
$79,630
$38.29
Retail Salespersons · benchmark
5,860
$31,200
$15.00
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers · benchmark
4,210
$59,050
$28.39
General and Operations Managers · benchmark
2,930
$107,780
$51.82
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education · benchmark
All items run 7.4% below the U.S. average (RPP 92.6); rents run 27.7% below (RPP 72.3) — the metro's housing affordability is the main driver.
Cost of living (RPP, all items)RPP 92.6
US
Fort Wayne's cost of living runs 7.4% below the U.S. average (RPP 92.6 vs 100).
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of metro/non-metro areas with a BEA price parity
BEA Regional Price Parity (all items)
RPP 92.6
−7.4% vs U.S. average · BEA 2024 · Fort Wayne, IN metro
HUD Fair Market Rent, 2-BR
$1,113/mo
FY2026 · Fort Wayne, IN HUD Metro FMR Area
State income tax (top marginal rate)
3.00%
flat · TY2025
Family-of-four monthly budget total
$4,568/mo
3BR rent + food + taxes + transport (childcare not modeled — county outside NDCP 2022 coverage) · federal sources Note: family-of-four total excludes childcare — modeled NDCP counties typically add $1,500–$2,900/mo for two children at center-based preschool + school-age care.
Single-adult monthly budget total
$3,980/mo
1BR rent + food + taxes + transport · federal sources
Household budget figures are arithmetic floors using current federal sources at the grains documented in methodology. Not a recommended salary, not a poverty threshold, not a composite score.
9.0% foreign-born (U.S. median 14%); Spanish is the most-spoken language at home other than English (6.9% of residents 5+).
A quick read on Fort Wayne's residents — nativity and languages spoken at home shown above, from the ACS 5-Year 2020–2024. The full demographic breakdown (age, race and ethnicity, household types, and educational attainment, each with its margin of error) lives on the demographics page.
These are K-12 public school districts. Higher education (colleges and universities) is not represented in this dataset.
Public school districts serving Fort Wayne, from the NCES EDGE Geographic Relationship Files (GRF25, 2024–25 school year boundaries). The join is many-to-many — large cities often span multiple districts, and one district often serves multiple cities. Sorted primary district first. See methodology §12 for the consolidated-city fallback and Milford CT special case.
Source: NCES EDGE GRF25 · school year 2024–25 · methodology →
What is the climate like in Fort Wayne?
Hottest month: July (84°F avg high). Coldest: January (18°F avg low). Annual precipitation: 38.7 in.
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) for Fort Wayne from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. See methodology §15 for the gridded vs. station source path.
Average monthly highs & lows · 30-year normal (NOAA 1991–2020). Every number on this chart is an average.
bar = avg daily high → avg daily lowprecip in inches below each barprecip in millimeters below each bar
Natural-hazard exposure for Fort Wayne from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index (FEMA NRI December 2025 v1.20.0). NRI is an expected-annual-loss composite calibrated on 1996–2019 historical losses, published at the U.S. county grain. See methodology §17.
County
NRI composite
Rating
Top hazards
Allen County
90.8
Relatively Moderate
Strong Wind 97.6 Relatively High · Tornado 97.5 Relatively High · Riverine Flooding 93.5 Relatively High
Source: FEMA National Risk Index · FEMA NRI December 2025 v1.20.0 · methodology →
How fast is home internet in Fort Wayne?
18 non-satellite ISPs serve the area; 72% of locations have gigabit-capable service per ISP filings.
Fixed broadband availability for Fort Wayne from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Data Collection (BDC), as of June 30, 2025. Every speed and provider count below is an ISP-reported advertised maximum — not measured throughput. Actual delivered speeds typically run 60–80% of advertised. See methodology §16.
Measure
Value
Note
Providers serving this city
18 + satellite
distinct ISPs, excluding satellite-only
Fiber providers
17
offer fiber-to-the-premises somewhere in the BDC
Units with ≥100/20 Mbps fixed
100.0%
share of broadband-serviceable units, ISP-reported max
Locations with ≥100 Mbps upload
71.8%
derived: max(fiber ≥100/20, gigabit). Fiber is symmetric; gigabit is ≥100 up by definition
Units with ≥1 Gbps fixed
71.8%
share of broadband-serviceable units, ISP-reported max
Total broadband-serviceable units
129,408
residential locations in the FCC Fabric (not households)
Source: FCC BDC · as of June 30, 2025 · methodology →
How much crime is reported in Fort Wayne?
In 2024, law enforcement reported 836 violent and 6,046 property offenses in the Fort Wayne jurisdiction — a violent-crime rate of 307.5 per 100,000, below the U.S. estimate of 359.1.
Reported offenses known to law enforcement from the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program (CIUS Table 8), 2024. Figures describe the FBI agency jurisdiction: Fort Wayne — an FBI jurisdiction population of 271,892, versus the Census place population of 275,203. The rate per 100,000 is the FBI's own (count ÷ that jurisdiction population), never divided by the Census place figure. These are reported crimes under voluntary participation — not measured or victimization crime — and the FBI cautions against using them to rank or compare places. See methodology §31.
Offenses known, 2024
Count
Rate /100k
U.S. rate
Violent crime
836
307.5
359.1
Property crime
6,046
2,223.7
1,760.1
▸ Offense breakdown and 3-year trend
Offense, 2024
Count
Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter
30
Rape
116
Robbery
149
Aggravated assault
541
Burglary
591
Larceny-theft
4,735
Motor vehicle theft
720
Arson (12-month reporters only)
55
Year
Violent /100k
Property /100k
Jurisdiction pop.
2022
262.1
2,387.3
267,791
2023
271.4
2,352.4
269,728
2024
307.5
2,223.7
271,892
Only years the agency reported a complete 12 months appear; the FBI does not estimate missing agency-years, so a gap is a non-reporting year, not zero crime.
U.S. rate is the FBI national estimate (imputes non-reporting agencies); the city figures are reported-only. Source: FBI UCR CIUS Table 8 (2022–2024) · FBI agency jurisdiction: Fort Wayne · methodology → · FBI Crime Data Explorer →
In-state context.
Fort Wayne sits at state rank #2 among 566 cities in Indiana. Nearby in the state ranking:
Just above in the profiled set: Chula Vista, CA · #81 · 275,533 residents.
Just below in the profiled set: Buffalo, NY · #83 · 274,613 residents.
Quick travel facts for Fort Wayne
Quick travel facts.
Nearest commercial airport
Fort Wayne International Airport(FWA) ·
8 mi 13 km from city centroid
Sources: elevation from USGS Elevation Point Query Service (3DEP) · nearest airport from OurAirports CSV (FAA-aligned, type=large/medium, scheduled_service=yes) · best months derived from NOAA 1991-2020 normals · methodology →
Frequently asked questions about Fort Wayne.
How many people live in Fort Wayne, IN?
Fort Wayne has 275,203 residents as of July 1, 2025, making it the #82 largest city in the United States and #2 in Indiana. Source: U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025.
Is Fort Wayne growing or shrinking?
Fort Wayne has grown 4.3% since the April 2020 census baseline, adding 11,285 residents, including a 0.8% increase from 2024 to 2025. Source: Census PEP Vintage 2025.
What was Fort Wayne's population in the 2020 census?
Fort Wayne covers 111.8 square miles of land, with a population density of about 2,462 residents per square mile. Source: Census Gazetteer 2025.
What is the median household income in Fort Wayne?
$61,422, about 21% below the U.S. median. Source: ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024.
SourceU.S. Census · PEP
VintageV2025
Reference2025-07-01
Place typeIncorporated place
GEOID1825000
Last build2026-07-02
Sources · provenance
Every listed dataset is used on this page.
The GEOID for Fort Wayne is 1825000. These are the official datasets used by this profile's main data modules; click "methodology" for inclusion rules and the V2019 ↔ V2025 seam, or "source" for the raw publisher page. The headline population value above includes a source-detail disclosure with publisher, dataset, vintage, native geography, transformation, and caveat.
