Berkshire County, Massachusetts

Berkshire County population, land area and income

Berkshire County had 128,726 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 926.9 square miles of land. It ranks 11th of 14 in Massachusetts by population and 2nd by land area. That works out to 138.9 people per square mile, 1.4 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Massachusetts has 503,121 residents, so Berkshire County has 26% of the typical county's population.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $74,535 is in the top quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Berkshire County's population changed since 2020

Berkshire County lost 1,086 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 0.8%. That ranks 14th of 14 in Massachusetts for growth. The median Massachusetts county changed by +2.2%, and the state as a whole by +2.0%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Berkshire County recorded 3,764 births and 7,237 deaths, a natural change of -3,473. Net international migration added +1,437 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +1,965. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 3,473 people.

Where Berkshire County is

The Census internal point of Berkshire County is at 42.371500, -73.217900. It sits in UTM zone 18N. The map shades Massachusetts's 14 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Berkshire County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Berkshire County

2 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Berkshire County, 55,613 people together, or 43% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Berkshire County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Pittsfield with 43,121.

Counties bordering Berkshire County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 8 neighbors for Berkshire County, including 5 across a state line. The most populous is Hampden County, MA, with 464,151 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Hampden County

  464,151 people

  34 mi ESE

• NY

  Dutchess County, NY

  299,963 people

  50 mi SSW

• Hampshire County

  165,399 people

  28 mi E

• NY

  Rensselaer County, NY

  160,749 people

  28 mi NNW

• CT

  Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT

  114,101 people

  36 mi S

• Franklin County

  70,871 people

  35 mi ENE

• NY

  Columbia County, NY

  60,299 people

  23 mi WSW

• VT

  Bennington County, VT

  37,039 people

  46 mi N

Distance to Boston and the nearest big city

Boston is 110.0 miles E of Berkshire County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Albany, NY (population 101,317), 35.9 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Pittsfield, MA (population 43,121), 6.0 miles away.

Berkshire County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Berkshire County is 25003: state code 25 for Massachusetts plus county code 003. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $74,535.