• county
  • FIPS 36023
  • Largest town: Cortland

Cortland County, New York

Cortland County had 45,945 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 498.8 square miles of land. It ranks 51st of 62 in New York by population and 43rd by land area.

Population
45,945
#51 of 62 in New York · #1,071 in US
Area
498.8 sq mi
#43 of 62 in New York · #2,090 in US
Density
92 / sq mi
#39 of 62 in New York · #975 in US
Median household income
$63,890
#44 of 62 in New York · #1,471 in US

Census Vintage 2024 estimates · SAIPE 2023 income · 2024 Gazetteer land area

Cortland County within New York. Pin: Albany.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Cortland County

Cortland County population, land area and income

Cortland County had 45,945 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 498.8 square miles of land. It ranks 51st of 62 in New York by population and 43rd by land area. That works out to 92.1 people per square mile, near the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in New York has 85,936 residents; Cortland County is somewhat smaller.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $63,890 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

45,945

3144th1st

1071st of 3,144 (US)

Land area

499 sq mi

3144th1st

2090th of 3,144 (US)

Density

92.1 / sq mi

3144th1st

975th of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$63,890

3143rd1st

1471st of 3,143 (US)

Rank within New York (62)

Population

45,945

62nd1st

51st of 62 (NY)

Land area

499 sq mi

62nd1st

43rd of 62 (NY)

Density

92.1 / sq mi

62nd1st

39th of 62 (NY)

Median household income

$63,890

62nd1st

44th of 62 (NY)

How Cortland County's population changed since 2020

Cortland County lost 806 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 1.7%. That ranks 45th of 62 in New York for growth. The median New York county changed by -0.8%, and the state as a whole by -1.2%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Cortland County recorded 1,874 births and 2,190 deaths, a natural change of -316. Net international migration added +78 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -627. The largest single component was domestic migration, which removed 627 people.

46.8k202046.4k202146.1k202246.0k202345.9k2024
Census Vintage 2024 county estimates for July 1 of each year. The axis starts above zero so year-to-year changes are visible.

Components of change, April 2020 to July 2024

Births
1,874
Deaths
2,190
Net international migration
+78
Net domestic migration
-627
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
-12

Where Cortland County is

The Census internal point of Cortland County is at 42.594000, -76.076200. It sits in UTM zone 18N. The map shades New York's 62 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Cortland County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Tompkins County: +5.8%Yates County: -1.3%Suffolk County: +0.9%Broome County: -0.9%Cortland County: -1.7%Fulton County: -2.0%Ulster County: +0.9%Rockland County: +3.2%Essex County: -1.5%Westchester County: +0.5%Niagara County: -1.2%Dutchess County: +1.4%Seneca County: -2.6%Onondaga County: -0.9%Tioga County: -1.6%Erie County: -0.2%Wayne County: -0.5%Delaware County: -0.1%Greene County: -1.8%Schenectady County: +1.9%Allegany County: -0.1%Rensselaer County: -0.1%Monroe County: -0.7%Warren County: -0.5%Livingston County: -0.1%Madison County: -1.3%Jefferson County: -2.5%Sullivan County: +2.5%Lewis County: +0.0%Oswego County: +0.7%Putnam County: +0.8%New York County: -1.1%Columbia County: -1.8%St. Lawrence County: -2.0%Schuyler County: -4.1%Franklin County: -0.3%Steuben County: -1.4%Cayuga County: -2.1%Oneida County: -1.2%Chemung County: -3.1%Herkimer County: -0.7%Schoharie County: +1.3%Cattaraugus County: -2.0%Chautauqua County: -2.6%Chenango County: -2.8%Hamilton County: +0.2%Orange County: +2.7%Washington County: -2.1%Ontario County: +0.6%Bronx County: -5.1%Wyoming County: -1.5%Clinton County: -2.3%Orleans County: -1.0%Montgomery County: +0.3%Nassau County: +0.1%Kings County: -3.6%Genesee County: -1.2%Otsego County: +3.7%Albany County: +1.9%Queens County: -3.1%Richmond County: +0.6%Saratoga County: +1.9%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -2.0%
  2. < -1.2%
  3. < -0.2%
  4. < +0.7%
  5. ≥ +0.7%
no data

Orange pin: Cortland County internal point. Dark pin: Albany.

Internal point

Decimal
42.594000, -76.076200
DMS
42°35'38.40"N 76°04'34.32"W
UTM
18N 411704.9E 4716292.1N
Geohash
dr9fkf500
Plus code
87J5HWVF+JG

Towns in Cortland County

2 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Cortland County, 20,535 people together, or 45% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Cortland County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Cortland with 17,459.

  1. 01Cortland17,459
  2. 02Homer3,076
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Cortland County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 7 neighbors for Cortland County. The most populous is Onondaga County, NY, with 469,812 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Albany and the nearest big city

Albany is 118.0 miles E of Cortland County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Syracuse, NY (population 146,097), 31.1 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Cortland, NY (population 17,459), 5.3 miles away.

Cortland County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Cortland County is 36023: state code 36 for New York plus county code 023. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $63,890.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Cortland County, New York?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 45,945. That is down 806 people (1.7%) from the July 2020 estimate of 46,751.

What is the FIPS code of Cortland County?

36023. The first two digits (36) are New York; the last three (023) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Cortland County?

Cortland, with 17,459 residents inside Cortland County in 2024.

Which counties border Cortland County?

7 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Onondaga County, NY; Broome County, NY; Tompkins County, NY; Cayuga County, NY; Madison County, NY; Tioga County, NY; Chenango County, NY.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census Vintage 2024 population estimates, 2024 Gazetteer land area and internal points, SAIPE 2023 median household income.

  1. 01Census Vintage 2024 county population estimates
  2. 02Census 2024 Gazetteer, counties
  3. 03Census SAIPE 2023 state and county estimates
  4. 04Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  5. 05Census 2024 county adjacency file
  6. 06Census 2024 cartographic boundary file, counties (1:5,000,000)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.