• county
  • FIPS 47143
  • Largest town: Dayton

Rhea County, Tennessee

Rhea County had 34,759 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 315.5 square miles of land. It ranks 45th of 95 in Tennessee by population and 69th by land area.

Population
34,759
#45 of 95 in Tennessee · #1,319 in US
Area
315.5 sq mi
#69 of 95 in Tennessee · #2,773 in US
Density
110 / sq mi
#33 of 95 in Tennessee · #851 in US
Median household income
$57,682
#47 of 95 in Tennessee · #2,066 in US

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

Rhea County within Tennessee. Pin: Nashville.

Measure from here

Tools and pages that start from Rhea County

Rhea County population, land area and income

Rhea County had 34,759 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 315.5 square miles of land. It ranks 45th of 95 in Tennessee by population and 69th by land area. That works out to 110.2 people per square mile, near the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in Tennessee has 32,883 residents, about the same as Rhea County.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $57,682 is below the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

National rank among 3,144

Population

34,759

3144th1st

1319th of 3,144 (US)

Land area

315 sq mi

3144th1st

2773rd of 3,144 (US)

Density

110.2 / sq mi

3144th1st

851st of 3,144 (US)

Median household income

$57,682

3143rd1st

2066th of 3,143 (US)

Rank within Tennessee (95)

Population

34,759

95th1st

45th of 95 (TN)

Land area

315 sq mi

95th1st

69th of 95 (TN)

Density

110.2 / sq mi

95th1st

33rd of 95 (TN)

Median household income

$57,682

95th1st

47th of 95 (TN)

How Rhea County's population changed since 2020

Rhea County gained 1,472 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a rise of 4.4%. That ranks 48th of 95 in Tennessee for growth. The median Tennessee county changed by +4.4%, and the state as a whole by +4.3%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Rhea County recorded 1,648 births and 2,208 deaths, a natural change of -560. Net international migration added +18 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +2,028. The largest single component was domestic migration, which added 2,028 people.

33.3k202033.5k202134.1k202234.3k202334.8k2024
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
1,648
Deaths
2,208
Net international migration
+18
Net domestic migration
+2,028
Change, July 2023 to July 2024
+440

Where Rhea County is

The Census internal point of Rhea County is at 35.600600, -84.949500. It sits in UTM zone 16N. The map shades Tennessee's 95 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Rhea County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Warren County: +6.2%Bledsoe County: +4.3%Cheatham County: +3.7%Crockett County: +0.5%Putnam County: +6.0%Houston County: +2.8%Macon County: +7.6%Sequatchie County: +11.2%Fayette County: +6.2%Trousdale County: +4.5%Union County: +6.1%Claiborne County: +3.1%Weakley County: +0.8%Coffee County: +5.4%Johnson County: +2.8%Overton County: +4.3%Lake County: -8.1%Moore County: +4.7%Hardeman County: -0.0%Jefferson County: +7.8%Smith County: +4.1%Robertson County: +7.5%Gibson County: +1.9%Henry County: +2.3%Grundy County: +4.4%Decatur County: +3.2%Greene County: +4.3%Hamblen County: +4.9%Humphreys County: +2.9%Knox County: +5.5%Roane County: +5.7%Lewis County: +6.4%Rhea County: +4.4%Rutherford County: +9.8%Montgomery County: +11.2%Lauderdale County: -2.0%Shelby County: -2.1%Tipton County: +1.9%Perry County: +7.2%Stewart County: +4.8%Chester County: +2.8%Washington County: +4.8%Polk County: +4.4%Van Buren County: +8.3%Dyer County: -0.8%Davidson County: +1.9%Cocke County: +4.3%Williamson County: +7.8%Benton County: +2.0%Dickson County: +5.9%Lawrence County: +5.2%Hamilton County: +5.0%McNairy County: +0.9%Meigs County: +8.8%Hawkins County: +4.7%Blount County: +4.8%White County: +6.1%Marshall County: +9.8%Sullivan County: +2.8%Campbell County: +2.4%Haywood County: -4.1%Bradley County: +4.5%Franklin County: +5.4%Sumner County: +7.2%Hardin County: +2.4%Grainger County: +6.4%Hickman County: +3.6%Pickett County: +2.2%Carroll County: +2.4%Henderson County: +1.3%Sevier County: +1.3%Hancock County: +6.2%Scott County: +2.9%McMinn County: +6.4%Morgan County: +4.3%Lincoln County: +4.0%Obion County: -1.7%Unicoi County: -0.0%Wayne County: -1.5%Cannon County: +4.0%Fentress County: +8.6%Loudon County: +12.7%Wilson County: +14.3%Bedford County: +7.6%Monroe County: +5.9%DeKalb County: +7.7%Marion County: +3.2%Carter County: +1.9%Clay County: +3.5%Madison County: +1.6%Cumberland County: +6.9%Anderson County: +5.3%Maury County: +11.4%Giles County: +2.1%Jackson County: +6.4%
Change 2020 to 2024
  1. < +1.9%
  2. < +3.7%
  3. < +4.9%
  4. < +6.4%
  5. ≥ +6.4%
no data

Orange pin: Rhea County internal point. Dark pin: Nashville.

Internal point

Decimal
35.600600, -84.949500
DMS
35°36'2.16"N 84°56'58.20"W
UTM
16N 685746.9E 3941586.0N
Geohash
dn7ddbvst
Plus code
867QJ322+66

Towns in Rhea County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Rhea County, 11,300 people together, or 33% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Rhea County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Dayton with 7,796.

  1. 01Dayton7,796
  2. 02Spring City1,996
  3. 03Graysville1,508
Census Vintage 2024 subcounty estimates, county parts of incorporated places (SUMLEV 157).

Counties bordering Rhea County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 5 neighbors for Rhea County. The most populous is Hamilton County, TN, with 386,256 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

Distance to Nashville and the nearest big city

Nashville is 109.9 miles WNW of Rhea County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Chattanooga, TN (population 191,496), 40.6 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Athens, TN (population 15,050), 21.8 miles away.

Rhea County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Rhea County is 47143: state code 47 for Tennessee plus county code 143. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $57,682.

Questions people ask

What is the population of Rhea County, Tennessee?

The Census Vintage 2024 estimate for July 1, 2024 is 34,759. That is up 1,472 people (4.4%) from the July 2020 estimate of 33,287.

What is the FIPS code of Rhea County?

47143. The first two digits (47) are Tennessee; the last three (143) identify the county.

What is the largest town in Rhea County?

Dayton, with 7,796 residents inside Rhea County in 2024.

Which counties border Rhea County?

5 county-equivalents border it in the Census 2024 adjacency file: Hamilton County, TN; Cumberland County, TN; Roane County, TN; Bledsoe County, TN; Meigs County, TN.

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.