• county
  • FIPS 45079
  • Largest town: Columbia

Richland County, South Carolina

Richland County had 430,651 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 757.3 square miles of land. It ranks 3rd of 46 in South Carolina by population and 13th by land area.

Population
430,651
#3 of 46 in South Carolina · #174 in US
Area
757.3 sq mi
#13 of 46 in South Carolina · #1,161 in US
Density
569 / sq mi
#2 of 46 in South Carolina · #253 in US
Median household income
$61,508
#18 of 46 in South Carolina · #1,689 in US

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

Richland County within South Carolina. Pin: Columbia.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Richland County

Richland County population, land area and income

Richland County had 430,651 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 757.3 square miles of land. It ranks 3rd of 46 in South Carolina by population and 13th by land area. That works out to 568.7 people per square mile, 5.9 times the US average of 96.3, and in the top tenth nationally.

The median county-equivalent in South Carolina has 60,098 residents, so Richland County is 7.2 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $61,508 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

430,651

3144th1st

174th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

757 sq mi

3144th1st

1161st of 3,144 (US)

Density

568.7 / sq mi

3144th1st

253rd of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$61,508

3143rd1st

1689th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within South Carolina (46)

Population

430,651

46th1st

3rd of 46 (SC)

Land area

757 sq mi

46th1st

13th of 46 (SC)

Density

568.7 / sq mi

46th1st

2nd of 46 (SC)

Median household income

$61,508

46th1st

18th of 46 (SC)

How Richland County's population changed since 2020

Richland County gained 14,954 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 3.6%. That ranks 22nd of 46 in South Carolina for growth. The median South Carolina county changed by +2.9%, and the state as a whole by +6.8%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Richland County recorded 19,145 births and 15,900 deaths, a natural change of +3,245. Net international migration added +5,911 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +5,252. The largest single component was international migration, which added 5,911 people.

415.7k2020417.3k2021421.7k2022425.2k2023430.7k2024
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
19,145
Deaths
15,900
Net international migration
+5,911
Net domestic migration
+5,252
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+5,415

Where Richland County is

The Census internal point of Richland County is at 34.029100, -80.898000. It sits in UTM zone 17N. The map shades South Carolina's 46 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Richland County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Union County: -1.9%Chester County: +0.1%Lee County: -3.6%Bamberg County: -2.9%Barnwell County: -0.5%Horry County: +16.9%Allendale County: -4.8%Chesterfield County: +2.9%Clarendon County: +0.6%Edgefield County: +14.7%Georgetown County: +4.0%McCormick County: +4.8%Pickens County: +4.9%Richland County: +3.6%Newberry County: +3.9%Spartanburg County: +12.1%Sumter County: -0.7%Marlboro County: -3.8%Berkeley County: +14.2%Charleston County: +5.1%Laurens County: +4.3%Saluda County: +2.9%Anderson County: +6.4%Dorchester County: +7.8%Dillon County: -2.5%Oconee County: +4.7%Beaufort County: +7.4%Cherokee County: +2.7%Greenville County: +8.2%York County: +6.7%Colleton County: +1.9%Darlington County: -0.7%Calhoun County: +1.0%Jasper County: +22.2%Marion County: -2.5%Fairfield County: -2.4%Hampton County: -1.9%Lancaster County: +15.6%Orangeburg County: -1.0%Aiken County: +6.0%Greenwood County: +0.9%Florence County: +0.9%Abbeville County: +1.4%Lexington County: +6.4%Kershaw County: +9.3%Williamsburg County: -3.4%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < -1.9%
  2. < +1.0%
  3. < +4.3%
  4. < +7.4%
  5. ≥ +7.4%
no data

Orange pin: Richland County internal point. Dark pin: Columbia.

Internal point

Decimal
34.029100, -80.898000
DMS
34°01'44.76"N 80°53'52.80"W
UTM
17N 509416.3E 3765387.2N
Geohash
dnn3x4gcg
Plus code
866X24H2+JQ

Towns in Richland County

5 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Richland County, 169,577 people together, or 39% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Richland County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Columbia with 144,151.

  1. 01Columbia (part)144,151
  2. 02Forest Acres10,438
  3. 03Irmo (part)7,891
  4. 04Blythewood (part)6,600
  5. 05Cayce (part)497
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Richland County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Richland County. The most populous is Lexington County, SC, with 313,774 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Columbia and the nearest big city

Columbia is 8.1 miles WSW of Richland County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Columbia, SC (population 144,788), 0.9 miles away.

Richland County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Richland County is 45079: state code 45 for South Carolina plus county code 079. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $61,508.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Richland County, South Carolina?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 430,651. That is up 14,954 people (3.6%) from the July 2020 estimate of 415,697.

What is the FIPS code of Richland County?

45079. The first two digits (45) are South Carolina; the last three (079) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Richland County?

Columbia, with 144,151 residents inside Richland County in 2024 (144,788 across all 2 counties it spans).

Which counties border Richland County?

6 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Lexington County, SC; Sumter County, SC; Kershaw County, SC; Newberry County, SC; Fairfield County, SC; Calhoun County, SC.

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.