Louisiana · Census place 2241155
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles is a city in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana with an estimated 81,157 residents on July 1, 2024. It is the 5th largest of 155 incorporated places of 1,000+ people in the state.
- Population 2024
- 81,157
- #5 of 155 in Louisiana
- Change since 2020
- -4.4%
- -3,728 people
- Land area
- 47.5 sq mi
- + 2.87 sq mi water
- Density
- 1,710 / sq mi
- State median 1,568
Measure from here
Tools and pages that start from Lake Charles
Lake Charles population, 2020 to 2024
Lake Charles lost 3,728 residents from July 2020 to July 2024, a change of -4.4%. In the latest year it moved by +1,220. Among 59 Louisiana places of 5,000 or more, that growth ranks 44th; the median place changed by -2.7%. The median place of 5,000+ in Louisiana has 11,686 people, so Lake Charles is 6.9 times that size.
Lake Charles covers 47.47 square miles of land and 2.87 of water, for 1,710 people per square mile of land. The median Louisiana place of 5,000+ has 1,568, so Lake Charles is close to the typical town.
What county Lake Charles is in
All of Lake Charles's residents live in Calcasieu Parish, which had 206,861 residents in 2024. Lake Charles holds 39.2% of the county's population. The shaded shape is on the map above; dots mark the eight nearest places.
ZIP codes in Lake Charles
6 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) overlap Lake Charles by at least 10% of the ZCTA's or the city's land: 70601, 70605, 70607, 70609, 70615, 70629. ZCTAs are Census approximations of USPS ZIP code delivery areas. The list comes from the 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file, so a city that annexed land after 2020 may reach into ZIP codes not listed here.
Where Lake Charles is
The Census internal point of Lake Charles is at 30.199000, -93.210800. Baton Rouge, the capital, is 122.0 miles E in a straight line. The nearest larger place is Beaumont, TX (112,893 people), 56.4 miles away.
Internal point
- Decimal
- 30.199000, -93.210800
- DMS
- 30°11'56.40"N 93°12'38.88"W
- UTM
- 15N 479709.5E 3340855.3N
- Geohash
- 9vmeyctcy
- Plus code
- 86285QXQ+JM
Daylight in Lake Charles
At 30.20° N, Lake Charles gets about 14 h 06 min of daylight around the June solstice and 10 h 12 min around the December solstice, a swing of 3 h 54 min. Figures are sunrise to sunset from the SunCalc model for June 21 and December 21, 2026.
Places near Lake Charles
The eight nearest incorporated places of 1,000+ in Louisiana, measured between internal points. The closest is Westlake, 5.3 miles away, with 4,735 people.
Questions people ask
What is the population of Lake Charles, LA?
81,157 on July 1, 2024, in the Census Vintage 2024 estimates. That is down 3,728 (4.4%) from 84,885 in July 2020.
What county is Lake Charles in?
Calcasieu Parish. All of its residents live in that county.
What ZIP codes cover Lake Charles?
6 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas overlap it by at least 10% of either area: 70601, 70605, 70607, 70609, 70615, 70629.
How far is Lake Charles from Baton Rouge?
122.0 miles (196.3 km) in a straight line, heading E from Lake Charles.
What is the nearest larger city to Lake Charles?
Beaumont, TX, with 112,893 residents, 56.4 miles away between internal points.
Sources and data as of
Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates (July 1, 2024), 2024 Gazetteer places, 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file.
- 01Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
- 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, places
- 03Census 2020 ZCTA to place relationship file
- 04Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)
How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.