Norfolk County, Massachusetts

Norfolk County population, land area and income

Norfolk County had 740,754 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 396.1 square miles of land. It ranks 5th of 14 in Massachusetts by population and 10th by land area. That works out to 1,870.1 people per square mile, 19.4 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top tenth nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Massachusetts has 503,121 residents; Norfolk County is somewhat larger.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $123,449 is in the top tenth among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Norfolk County's population changed since 2020

Norfolk County gained 17,004 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 2.3%. That ranks 6th 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, Norfolk County recorded 30,036 births and 26,705 deaths, a natural change of +3,331. Net international migration added +25,164 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -14,009. The largest single component was international migration, which added 25,164 people.

Where Norfolk County is

The Census internal point of Norfolk County is at 42.171700, -71.181100. It sits in UTM zone 19N. The map shades Massachusetts's 14 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Norfolk County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Norfolk County

5 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Norfolk County, 271,583 people together, or 37% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Norfolk County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Quincy with 103,434.

Counties bordering Norfolk County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Norfolk County, including 1 across a state line. The most populous is Middlesex County, MA, with 1,668,956 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Middlesex County

  1,668,956 people

  24 mi NNW

• Worcester County

  881,248 people

  40 mi WNW

• Suffolk County

  793,144 people

  14 mi NE

• RI

  Providence County, RI

  675,912 people

  29 mi SW

• Bristol County

  588,593 people

  30 mi S

• Plymouth County

  542,090 people

  26 mi ESE

Distance to Boston and the nearest big city

Boston is 14.2 miles NNE of Norfolk County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Brockton, MA (population 105,788), 10.1 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Randolph Town, MA (population 35,114), 6.6 miles away.

Norfolk County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Norfolk County is 25021: state code 25 for Massachusetts plus county code 021. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $123,449.