Memphis, Tennessee population is 609,647 as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimate), ranking #29 nationally and #2 in Tennessee. Cost of living runs 7.8% below the U.S. average (BEA RPP 2024); a family of four needs roughly $75,166/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
609,647
-4,575 in the last year
Top 1% of 19,483 U.S. cities
Census Vintage 2025
Cost of living
RPP 92.2
−7.8% vs US
Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro · BEA 2024
Family-of-4 budget
$75,166/yr
−6.2% vs US
Modeled 2025 · federal sources
Median HH income
$51,736
−33% vs US
ACS 2020–2024 5-yr
Median home value
$169,000
−44% vs US
ACS 2020–2024 5-yr
2-BR fair-market rent
$1,274/mo
HUD FY2026 · 40th pct
Avg July high
91°F
NOAA 1991–2020
Gigabit broadband
86%
ISP-reported, FCC BDC
Explore Memphis, TN demographics, including age, race and ethnicity, households, origins, language, and education.
How many people live in Memphis?
609,647 people live in Memphis as of July 1, 2025 (U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025), the #29 largest U.S. city.
How big is Memphis?
Memphis covers 289.8 square miles of land and 8.9 square miles of water. Its population density is about 2,104 residents per square mile of land. Compare U.S. cities by land area →
Source detail: 2025 population
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 shrank 3.0% from the April 2020 base to mid-2025.
Vintage 2025 · annual estimates
Recent history (V2025 series, 2020 base → 2025).
2020 base: 628,510 → 2025: 609,647 (-3.0%)
Year
Population
Reference date
2020 base
628,510
April 1, 2020
2020
628,282
July 1, 2020
2021
622,541
July 1, 2021
2022
618,901
July 1, 2022
2023
615,634
July 1, 2023
2024
614,222
July 1, 2024
2025
609,647
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 shrank 0.2% from the July 2010 estimate to 2019 (V2019 — see seam note below).
Memphis is the #29 largest of 19,483 U.S. cities and #2 in Tennessee.
▸Show the analyst detail (9 rows)
Measure
Value
Note
2020 base
628,510
April 1, 2020 census base
5-yr change
-18,863
2020 base → 2025; within V2025
5-yr change %
-3.0%
within V2025 only
1-yr change
-4,575
2024 → 2025 estimate
1-yr change %
-0.7%
within V2025 only
Density
2,104
people per sq mi, land only
Land area
289.8
sq mi (2025 Gazetteer)
U.S. rank by population
#29
of 19,483 cities
State rank by population
#2
of 345 in Tennessee
What is the median household income in Memphis?
Median household income is 33% below the U.S. median ($51,736 vs $77,719); 23.1% live in poverty — 10.6 points above the 12.5% U.S. rate.
Median household income$51,736
US
Memphis: $51,736 — 33% below the US median of $77,719.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS income data
Memphis
$51,736
United States
$77,719
Income and poverty estimates for Memphis 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
51,736-33.4% vs US
±1,072
Per capita income
33,100-23.5% vs US
±933
Population in poverty
23.1%
share of population for whom poverty status is determined
Median home value is 44% below the U.S. median ($169,000 vs $303,400); median rent is 12% below ($1,181 vs $1,348); price-to-income ratio is 3.3×, making it 1.2× as affordable as the typical U.S. city (3.9×).
Median home value$169,000
US
Memphis: $169,000 — 44% below the US median of $303,400.
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of cities with ACS home-value data
HUD 2-BR fair-market rent$1,274/mo
US
Memphis: $1,274/mo — 18% 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 Memphis. 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)
4.9%
Memphis (BLS sub-state LAUS)
Civilian labor force
283,593
2024 annual avg
Worked from home
9.2%-34.5% vs US
share of workers 16+ commuting from home · U.S. median: 14% · ACS
County context — Memphis sits in Shelby County:
County
Poverty rate
Median HH income
Unemployment
Shelby County
19.0%
$65,005
4.5%
Top industries by private employment — NAICS supersectors rolled up from Memphis'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)
72,996
$1,374 / wk
#2
Transportation and warehousing (48-49)
66,573
$1,629 / wk
#3
Retail trade (44-45)
43,896
$857 / wk
#4
Administrative and waste services (56)
38,724
$875 / wk
#5
Accommodation and food services (72)
38,226
$503 / wk
What workers earn in the Memphis, TN-MS-AR 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.
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand is the largest tracked occupation in the Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro (37,750 jobs, median $39,510/yr).
▸Show all 12 occupations
Occupation
Employment
Median annual
Median hourly
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
37,750
$39,510
$19.00
Fast Food and Counter Workers
15,320
$27,490
$13.21
Stockers and Order Fillers
12,200
$37,280
$17.92
Cashiers
10,840
$29,160
$14.02
Customer Service Representatives
9,360
$44,090
$21.20
Office Clerks, General
9,060
$38,610
$18.56
Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers · benchmark
19,460
$63,070
$30.32
Retail Salespersons · benchmark
17,050
$32,580
$15.67
Registered Nurses · benchmark
13,760
$81,500
$39.18
General and Operations Managers · benchmark
9,730
$102,510
$49.28
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education · benchmark
All items run 7.8% below the U.S. average (RPP 92.2); utilities run 25.9% below (RPP 74.1) — the metro's utility affordability is the main driver.
Cost of living (RPP, all items)RPP 92.2
US
Memphis's cost of living runs 7.8% below the U.S. average (RPP 92.2 vs 100).
Scale: 10th–90th percentile of metro/non-metro areas with a BEA price parity
BEA Regional Price Parity (all items)
RPP 92.2
−7.8% vs U.S. average · BEA 2024 · Memphis, TN-MS-AR metro
HUD Fair Market Rent, 2-BR
$1,274/mo
FY2026 · Memphis, TN-MS-AR HUD Metro FMR Area
State income tax (top marginal rate)
0%
no state income tax · TY2025
Family-of-four monthly budget total
$6,264/mo
3BR rent + food + childcare + taxes + transport · federal sources
Single-adult monthly budget total
$3,978/mo
1BR rent + food + taxes + transport · federal sources
Local income tax
—
not applicable in Tennessee · no modeled local income tax
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.
7.7% foreign-born (U.S. median 14%); Spanish is the most-spoken language at home other than English (8.4% of residents 5+).
A quick read on Memphis'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.
Hottest month: July (91°F avg high). Coldest: January (32°F avg low). Annual precipitation: 55.5 in.
30-year climate normals (1991-2020) for Memphis 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
Composite risk score: 99.4/100 — Relatively High nationally; top hazard: Tornado (99.8).
Natural-hazard exposure for Memphis 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
Shelby County
99.4
Relatively High
Tornado 99.8 Very High · Cold Wave 99.8 Very High · Heat Wave 99.6 Relatively High
Source: FEMA National Risk Index · FEMA NRI December 2025 v1.20.0 · methodology →
How fast is home internet in Memphis?
15 non-satellite ISPs serve the area; 86% of locations have gigabit-capable service per ISP filings.
Fixed broadband availability for Memphis 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
15 + satellite
distinct ISPs, excluding satellite-only
Fiber providers
12
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
85.9%
derived: max(fiber ≥100/20, gigabit). Fiber is symmetric; gigabit is ≥100 up by definition
Units with ≥1 Gbps fixed
85.9%
share of broadband-serviceable units, ISP-reported max
Total broadband-serviceable units
318,641
residential locations in the FCC Fabric (not households)
Source: FCC BDC · as of June 30, 2025 · methodology →
How much crime is reported in Memphis?
In 2024, law enforcement reported 15,338 violent and 42,305 property offenses in the Memphis jurisdiction — a violent-crime rate of 2,501.3 per 100,000, above 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: Memphis — an FBI jurisdiction population of 613,207, versus the Census place population of 609,647. 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
15,338
2,501.3
359.1
Property crime
42,305
6,899.0
1,760.1
▸Offense breakdown and 3-year trend
Offense, 2024
Count
Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter
249
Rape
429
Robbery
2,138
Aggravated assault
12,522
Burglary
5,616
Larceny-theft
26,978
Motor vehicle theft
9,711
Arson (12-month reporters only)
343
Year
Violent /100k
Property /100k
Jurisdiction pop.
2022
2,420.9
7,165.9
624,944
2023
2,611.9
8,602.9
616,061
2024
2,501.3
6,899.0
613,207
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: Memphis · methodology → · FBI Crime Data Explorer →
In-state context.
Memphis sits at state rank #2 among 345 cities in Tennessee. Nearby in the state ranking:
Just above in the profiled set: Portland, OR · #28 · 635,109 residents.
Just below in the profiled set: Baltimore, MD · #30 · 569,997 residents.
Quick travel facts for Memphis
Quick travel facts.
Nearest commercial airport
Memphis International Airport(MEM) · 5 mi 7 km from city centroid
Best months to visit
Oct · months when the avg high sits in 65–80°F and precipitation is at or below the city's median monthly precip
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 Memphis.
How many people live in Memphis, TN?
Memphis has 609,647 residents as of July 1, 2025, making it the #29 largest city in the United States and #2 in Tennessee. Source: U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025.
Is Memphis growing or shrinking?
Memphis has shrunk 3.0% since the April 2020 census baseline, losing 18,863 residents, including a 0.7% decline from 2024 to 2025. Source: Census PEP Vintage 2025.
The GEOID for Memphis is 4748000. 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.
