Monroe County, Pennsylvania

Monroe County population, land area and income

Monroe County had 166,523 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 608.4 square miles of land. It ranks 20th of 67 in Pennsylvania by population and 36th by land area. That works out to 273.7 people per square mile, 2.8 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in Pennsylvania has 82,953 residents, so Monroe County is 2.0 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $73,408 is in the top quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Monroe County's population changed since 2020

Monroe County lost 1,803 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 1.1%. That ranks 42nd of 67 in Pennsylvania for growth. The median Pennsylvania county changed by -0.5%, and the state as a whole by +0.6%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Monroe County recorded 5,812 births and 7,651 deaths, a natural change of -1,839. Net international migration added +975 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -1,025. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 1,839 people.

Where Monroe County is

The Census internal point of Monroe County is at 41.056200, -75.329100. It sits in UTM zone 18N. The map shades Pennsylvania's 67 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Monroe County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Monroe County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Monroe County, 18,303 people together, or 11% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Monroe County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is East Stroudsburg with 9,445.

Counties bordering Monroe County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 8 neighbors for Monroe County, including 2 across a state line. The most populous is Luzerne County, PA, with 331,379 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Luzerne County

  331,379 people

  35 mi WNW

• Northampton County

  322,989 people

  21 mi S

• Lackawanna County

  216,859 people

  30 mi NNW

• NJ

  Sussex County, NJ

  147,444 people

  34 mi E

• NJ

  Warren County, NJ

  112,031 people

  22 mi SE

• Carbon County

  65,743 people

  22 mi WSW

• Pike County

  62,376 people

  24 mi NE

• Wayne County

  51,419 people

  41 mi N

Distance to Harrisburg and the nearest big city

Harrisburg is 98.2 miles WSW of Monroe County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Allentown, PA (population 127,138), 32.9 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Easton, PA (population 30,432), 26.2 miles away.

Monroe County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Monroe County is 42089: state code 42 for Pennsylvania plus county code 089. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $73,408.