Mississippi population: race, income, health and a flat 25 years

What percent of Mississippi is Black?

Three federal measures give slightly different answers. The population estimates, which count people who report Black as their only race, put the share at 36.8%. The American Community Survey (ACS) for 2025 puts non-Hispanic Black residents at 35.8% (±0.4 percentage points²), and everyone who reports Black alone or together with another race at 37.6%. On either measure Mississippi is highest among the 50 states¹⁰, and its share is higher than every bordering state (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee)⁹.

District of Columbia41.6%

Mississippi36.8%

Georgia32.4%

Louisiana32.1%

Maryland31.1%

Alabama25.9%

South Carolina24.4%

Delaware24.0%

United States13.5%

Source: Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025. Period: July 1, 2025.

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State	Black alone
District of Columbia	41.6%
Mississippi	36.8%
Georgia	32.4%
Louisiana	32.1%
Maryland	31.1%
Alabama	25.9%
South Carolina	24.4%
Delaware	24.0%
United States	13.5%

By count the picture changes. The ACS found 1,059,049 residents who are Black alone in 2025 (ACS 1-year)¹¹. On the 2020–2024 survey averages used to compare every state, that is the 18th largest Black population; Texas (3,692,993) and Georgia (3,401,114¹²) have the most. Mississippi stands out by share, not by size.

The share is not rising. In the ACS the non-Hispanic Black share is down from 36.4% in 2005¹³, and not statistically different from 35.8% in 2024². In the population estimates, the Black alone share is down from 37.1% in 2020⁹.

White, Hispanic, Asian and multiracial residents

Non-Hispanic white residents are a majority, at 54.0% in 2025, down from 55.0% in 2024 and 1.0 percentage points below the US figure (55.0%)². Over two decades the share is down from 60.0% in 2005¹³. Counting everyone who reports white alone or with another race, the share is 60.0%¹⁴.

Single group (adds to 100%)Alone or in combination with other races

White, not Hispanic54.0% 60.0%

Black, not Hispanic35.8% 37.6%

Hispanic or Latino (any race)4.3%

Two or more races, not Hispanic3.8%

Asian, not Hispanic1.4% 2.0%

American Indian and Alaska Native, not Hispanic0.4% 2.2%

Some other race, not Hispanic0.4%

Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, not Hispanic0.0% 0.1%

Source: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, 2025, table B03002; Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, 2025, table B02009. The dark bars are mutually exclusive and add to 100%. The light bars count everyone who reported the race, alone or with another race and of any ethnicity, so they overlap and add to more than 100%.

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Group	Share (single group)	MOE	Alone or in combination
White, not Hispanic	54.0%	±0.2	60.0%
Black, not Hispanic	35.8%	±0.4	37.6%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	4.3%	±0.1	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.8%	±0.3	–
Asian, not Hispanic	1.4%	±0.1	2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native, not Hispanic	0.4%	±0.1	2.2%
Some other race, not Hispanic	0.4%	±0.1	–
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, not Hispanic	0.0%		0.1%

The other groups are small next to the national figures. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race make up 4.3%, 16.2 percentage points below the US figure (20.5%); in the population estimates their share is 4th lowest among the states and DC, up from 3.6% in 2020⁹. Non-Hispanic Asian residents are 1.4%² of the population; the largest Asian groups in 2020–2024 were Vietnamese (6,753), Asian Indian (6,650) and Chinese, except Taiwanese (5,126¹⁵) Mississippians.

One figure here is unusual. People who report two or more races are 3.0% of Mississippians in the population estimates, the lowest in the nation⁹. Most residents identify with a single race, Black or white. The diversity index, the chance that two residents picked at random belong to different groups, is 57.7, 22nd most diverse¹⁶: a two-group state rather than a many-group one.

The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians

The 2020 Census counted 12,548 Mississippians who reported American Indian as their only race and 41,678 who reported it alone or with another race. The most common answers were the generic "Cherokee" and "Choctaw", followed by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, named by 5,856¹⁷ people. People can report more than one tribe, so these counts overlap and should not be added.

Three million people, then and now

Mississippi had 2,954,160 residents on July 1, 2025, the 17th smallest state and smaller than every bordering state (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee). The 2000 Census counted 2,844,658⁶. The estimates peaked at 2,987,656 in 2014¹, then slipped for eight years before turning up again in 2023.

MississippiAlabamaArkansasLouisianaTennesseeUnited States

Source: Census Bureau, Intercensal Estimates of the Resident Population for States, 2000-2010; Census Bureau, Intercensal Estimates of the Resident Population for States, 2010-2020; Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025. July 1 estimates: intercensal series for 2000–2019, Vintage 2025 for 2020–2025.

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Year	Mississippi	Alabama	Arkansas	Louisiana	Tennessee	United States
2000	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
2001	100.2	100.3	100.5	100.1	100.8	101.0
2002	100.4	100.6	101.0	100.6	101.6	101.9
2003	100.7	101.2	101.7	101.1	102.5	102.8
2004	101.4	101.8	102.7	101.8	103.6	103.8
2005	102.0	102.6	103.8	102.3	105.0	104.7
2006	102.0	104.0	105.3	96.2	106.8	105.7
2007	102.8	105.0	106.3	97.8	108.3	106.8
2008	103.5	106.0	107.3	99.2	109.5	107.8
2009	103.9	106.9	108.1	100.4	110.6	108.7
2010	104.3	107.5	109.1	101.6	111.4	109.6
2011	104.5	108.1	109.7	102.4	112.3	110.5
2012	104.7	108.7	110.1	102.9	113.3	111.4
2013	104.9	109.3	110.3	103.5	114.1	112.2
2014	104.9	109.8	110.5	104.0	115.0	113.1
2015	104.8	110.3	110.9	104.4	116.0	114.1
2016	104.8	110.8	111.3	104.8	117.0	115.0
2017	104.7	111.3	111.7	104.6	118.2	115.8
2018	104.4	111.8	111.9	104.4	119.3	116.4
2019	104.2	112.4	112.2	104.3	120.3	117.0
2020	103.9	113.0	112.5	104.0	121.5	117.5
2021	103.5	113.4	113.0	103.5	122.1	117.7
2022	103.3	114.0	113.8	102.9	123.8	118.4
2023	103.3	115.0	114.6	102.8	125.4	119.3
2024	103.6	116.0	115.6	103.2	127.1	120.5
2025	103.7	116.6	116.3	103.3	128.3	121.1

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses the state changed by −0.2%, the 2nd lowest growth of any state and 7.6 percentage points below the US figure (7.4%). Over the five years since the April 2020 census base it changed by −7,104 people, one of 7 states that had fewer residents in July 2025 than in April 2020¹. Its rank slipped from 31st of 51 in 2010 to 34th of 51⁶ in 2020.

The count was 2,183,796 in 1940 and 2,178,141²⁰ in 1960: two decades with no net growth. The total today is 1.4 times the 1950 count and 1.9 times¹ the 1900 count.

More deaths than births, despite a high birth rate

Mississippi's birth rate is above the national rate: 11.2 per 1,000 residents in the year to June 2025, 6% above the US figure (10.6 per 1,000 residents). Its death rate is higher still, at 12.1 per 1,000 residents, the 2nd highest of any state and 33% above the US figure (9.1 per 1,000 residents). The result was 33,168 births against 35,775 deaths, a natural decrease of −2,607. Mississippi is one of 17 states that recorded more deaths than births in the year to June 2025, and its natural change was lower than every bordering state (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee)¹.

Births+180,776

Deaths−199,446

Net domestic migration−22,888

Net international migration+34,204

Residual (estimation adjustment)+250

Total change−7,104

Source: Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025. Each bar starts where the previous one ended. The residual is the part of the change the Census Bureau cannot assign to a component.

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Component	People
Births	180,776
Deaths	−199,446
Net domestic migration	−22,888
Net international migration	34,204
Residual (estimation adjustment)	250
Total change	−7,104

Since April 2020 the three parts of change nearly cancelled out. Natural change, births minus deaths, came to −18,670, and net moves to and from other states to −22,888. Net international migration added 34,204, which is what kept the decline small. The domestic loss narrowed to −917¹ in the year to June 2025, the smallest of the five years.

The main partners are nearby states. In the 2024 survey of movers, 64,492 people moved to Mississippi from another state and 53,696 left for one. Texas received the most leavers (11,003) and also sent the most arrivals (8,574); the inflow from Texas is not statistically different from the flow from Tennessee, and the outflow to Texas is not statistically different from the flow to Alabama²¹. Tax returns for 2022 and 2023 show a net change of −3,142²² people.

Moved to Mississippi from

Texas8,574 ±2,693

Tennessee8,457 ±2,868

Alabama8,215 ±3,035

Louisiana7,040 ±1,846

Arkansas5,010 ±2,899

Georgia3,210 ±1,580

Left Mississippi for

Texas11,003 ±4,181

Alabama7,574 ±2,264

Tennessee7,292 ±2,444

Louisiana5,108 ±1,973

Florida4,724 ±3,591

Georgia3,304 ±1,354

Source: Census Bureau, State-to-State Migration Flows, 2024. People aged 1 and over who lived in another state a year earlier (and the reverse). Survey estimates: whiskers show the 90% margin of error.

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State	Moved in from	Moved out to
Texas	8,574 ±2,693	11,003 ±4,181
Tennessee	8,457 ±2,868	7,292 ±2,444
Alabama	8,215 ±3,035	7,574 ±2,264
Louisiana	7,040 ±1,846	5,108 ±1,973
Arkansas	5,010 ±2,899	2,005 ±1,159
Georgia	3,210 ±1,580	3,304 ±1,354
Florida	3,023 ±1,163	4,724 ±3,591

The population is unusually home-grown. 69.4% of residents were born in Mississippi, the 4th highest share of any state and 13.0 percentage points above the US figure (56.4%)²³.

Most Mississippians live in rural areas

At the 2020 Census, 53.7% of Mississippians lived in rural areas, 33.7 percentage points above the US figure (20.0%). Only Vermont, Maine and West Virginia had a larger rural share, and Mississippi's was higher than every bordering state (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee)²⁴. Density is 63.0 people per square mile, 35% below the US figure (96.7 people per square mile)²⁵.

Housing reflects the rural pattern. Mobile homes make up 14.2% of housing units, 8.9 percentage points above the US figure (5.3%), and only 2.9%²⁶ are in buildings with 20 or more units. This site covers states, not cities or counties, so it does not report figures for Jackson or Hinds County.

The lowest incomes, the second-lowest prices

Half of Mississippi households had income above $59,346 in 2025 (±$1,510) and half below. That is the lowest in the nation, $25,434 (30%) below the US figure ($84,780) and lower than every bordering state (Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee)⁴. The median for families, $76,450, ranks between 50th and 51st²⁷. In 2005 the household median was $54,297¹³ in 2025 dollars, adjusted for inflation.

MississippiUnited States

Under $25,00021.5% 14.0%

$25,000–$49,99921.7% 15.4%

$50,000–$99,99929.0% 27.8%

$100,000–$199,99921.7% 28.0%

$200,000 or more6.2% 14.8%

Source: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, 2025, table B19001. Share of households in each band of income in the past 12 months, in 2025 dollars.

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Household income	Mississippi	MOE	United States
Under $25,000	21.5%	±0.9	14.0%
$25,000–$49,999	21.7%	±0.9	15.4%
$50,000–$99,999	29.0%	±1.0	27.8%
$100,000–$199,999	21.7%	±0.8	28.0%
$200,000 or more	6.2%	±0.4	14.8%

The distribution leans toward the bottom. 21.5% of households had less than $25,000, the highest share (between 1st and 3rd), and 6.2% had $200,000 or more, the lowest²⁸ share.

Prices partly offset the gap. The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts Mississippi's overall price level at 87.0 for 2024 (US = 100), the 2nd least expensive after Arkansas. Most of the difference is housing: rents are priced at 56.5, 44% below the US figure (100.6), and utilities at 78.4, while goods (96.2) and services (96.1²⁹) cost nearly the national average. The median home value is $192,700, $178,400 (48%) below the US figure ($371,100)³⁰, and median gross rent is $1,033³¹.

Lower prices do not close the gap. Personal income per person, adjusted for each state's price level, was $48,465 in 2024, still the lowest in the nation and $10,730 (18%) below the US figure ($59,195)²⁹. Before the price adjustment, per capita income was $54,433, $22,595 (29%) below the US figure ($77,028)³²: cheaper prices narrow the gap but leave Mississippi last.

Homeownership is common: 71.6% of households own their home, the 9th highest³³ rate.

Poverty: high, but lower than in 2005

The official poverty rate was 18.0% in 2025 (±0.7 percentage points), 6.2 percentage points above the US figure (11.8%). Mississippi ranks between 1st and 2nd; its rate is higher than Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee; not statistically different from Louisiana⁵. Over the longer run the rate is down from 21.3% in 2005; in the ACS series it was highest in 2012, at 24.2%¹³.

MississippiUnited States

Source: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, 2005-2019 and 2021-2025. ACS 1-year estimates; no standard 1-year release for 2020. Shaded band: 90% margin of error.

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Year	Mississippi	United States
2005	21.3% ±0.6	13.3% ±0.1
2006	21.1% ±0.7	13.3% ±0.1
2007	20.6% ±0.7	13.0% ±0.1
2008	21.2% ±0.9	13.2% ±0.1
2009	21.9% ±0.6	14.3% ±0.1
2010	22.4% ±0.8	15.3% ±0.1
2011	22.6% ±0.7	15.9% ±0.1
2012	24.2% ±0.8	15.9% ±0.1
2013	24.0% ±0.8	15.8% ±0.1
2014	21.5% ±0.6	15.5% ±0.1
2015	22.0% ±0.7	14.7% ±0.1
2016	20.8% ±0.7	14.0% ±0.1
2017	19.8% ±0.5	13.4% ±0.1
2018	19.7% ±0.6	13.1% ±0.1
2019	19.6% ±0.8	12.3% ±0.1
2021	19.4% ±0.6	12.8% ±0.1
2022	19.1% ±0.6	12.6% ±0.1
2023	18.0% ±0.8	12.5% ±0.1
2024	17.8% ±0.8	12.1% ±0.1
2025	18.0% ±0.7	11.8% ±0.1

Children are most exposed: 24.6% of residents under 18 lived in poverty, 9.8 percentage points above the US figure (14.8%). Among working-age adults the rate was 16.9%, highest (between 1st and 3rd⁵). A wider measure, income below twice the poverty line, covers 38.6% of residents, the highest in the nation³⁴.

The Census Bureau's Supplemental Poverty Measure, which counts benefits and taxes and adjusts for local housing costs, gives a smaller gap. It puts Mississippi at 16.8% on average over 2023 to 2025, 3rd highest (between 2nd and 6th). That is below the state's official rate from the same survey, 17.6%³⁵, while nationally the supplemental rate is the higher of the two. The supplemental measure sets lower poverty thresholds where housing is cheap and adds benefits such as SNAP to income, so a state with low rents can come out lower on it. Food assistance reaches far among the poor: 57.4% of households below the poverty line received SNAP in 2025, the 3rd highest³⁶ share.

Baptist churches, and the smallest Catholic share

Mississippi has the second-highest number of congregations per resident in the country, 24.3 per 10,000 residents, according to the 2020 U.S. Religion Census. The Southern Baptist Convention alone counted 28.0% of residents, and Evangelical Protestant churches together 39.0%, the 3rd highest share. Historically Black Protestant churches counted 8.7%, the 2nd highest³⁷ share; the study notes that several large Black denominations are under-represented, so this is likely an undercount.

For readers asking what percent of Mississippi is Christian or Catholic: Christian congregations counted 59.2% of residents, while Catholic parishes counted 3.4%, the lowest in the nation³⁷. All figures are lists kept by congregations rather than survey answers (about the source).

Health: the shortest lives after West Virginia

Life expectancy at birth was 72.6 years in 2022, the 2nd shortest of any state after West Virginia (72.2 years) and 4.9 years below the US figure (77.5 years). For men it was 69.5 years, for women 75.7 years³⁸.

Mississippi9.7

Arkansas8.3

Delaware7.8

Louisiana7.6

South Carolina7.5

Oklahoma7.4

South Dakota7.3

Alabama7.1

Alaska6.8

Ohio6.7

United States5.5

Source: CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Stats of the States. Period: 2024.

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State	Infant mortality
Mississippi	9.7
Arkansas	8.3
Delaware	7.8
Louisiana	7.6
South Carolina	7.5
Oklahoma	7.4
South Dakota	7.3
Alabama	7.1
Alaska	6.8
Ohio	6.7
United States	5.5

Infant mortality was 9.7 per 1,000 live births in 2024, the highest in the nation and 75% above the US figure (5.5 per 1,000 live births). Preterm births and low birth weight are also more common than nationally: 15.00% of babies were born preterm and 12.70%³⁹ at low birth weight. The teen birth rate, 22.8 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19, is the highest in the nation⁴⁰.

Among adults, 40.4% report obesity, the 2nd highest⁴¹ share, and 18.8% of residents have a disability, the 2nd highest⁴². The drug overdose death rate is an exception: 18.6 per 100,000, age-adjusted, 19% below the US figure (23.1 per 100,000, age-adjusted). The leading causes of death are Heart disease and Cancer³⁹. 10.2%⁴³ of residents had no health insurance in 2025; the share is down from 17.9% in 2008¹³.

Women, children and families

Mississippi has 93.0 males for every 100 females, a ratio tied for 4th lowest⁹, which leaves about 115,000⁴⁴ more women than men.

Residents under 18 are 22.3% of the population, the 13th highest share, yet their number is down from 688,704 in 2020. Residents 65 and older are 19.3%, up from 17.2% in 2020⁹. The median age is 40.2 years, 0.7 years above the US figure (39.5 years)³.

Families headed by a woman with no spouse present make up 16.4% of households, highest in the nation; married couples are 43.4%, the 6th lowest⁴⁵ share. 53.9% of births in 2024 were to unmarried mothers, 14.4 percentage points above the US figure (39.5%)³⁹.

Schooling and work

Among adults aged 25 and older, 88.3% have at least a high school diploma and 26.9% a bachelor's degree or higher, the 2nd lowest share. Since 2005 the high school share is up from 78.5% in 2005, and the degree share up from 18.7% in 2005¹³. Associate degrees are more common than nationally, 11.3%⁴⁶. In public high schools, 89% of students graduated within four years in the 2021–2022 school year, tied for 9th highest⁴⁷.

MississippiUnited States

Source: Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates, 2005-2019 and 2021-2025. ACS 1-year estimates; no standard 1-year release for 2020. Shaded band: 90% margin of error.

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Year	Mississippi	United States
2005	78.5% ±0.5	84.2% ±0.0
2006	77.9% ±0.5	84.1% ±0.0
2007	78.5% ±0.5	84.5% ±0.0
2008	79.9% ±0.5	85.0% ±0.0
2009	80.4% ±0.5	85.3% ±0.0
2010	81.0% ±0.5	85.6% ±0.0
2011	81.1% ±0.5	85.9% ±0.0
2012	82.3% ±0.4	86.4% ±0.0
2013	82.4% ±0.5	86.6% ±0.0
2014	82.8% ±0.4	86.9% ±0.0
2015	83.5% ±0.4	87.1% ±0.0
2016	84.1% ±0.4	87.5% ±0.0
2017	84.4% ±0.4	88.0% ±0.0
2018	85.4% ±0.4	88.3% ±0.0
2019	85.3% ±0.4	88.6% ±0.0
2021	86.5% ±0.4	89.4% ±0.0
2022	87.6% ±0.4	89.6% ±0.0
2023	87.8% ±0.4	89.8% ±0.0
2024	88.0% ±0.3	89.9% ±0.0
2025	89.1% ±0.3	91.9% ±0.0

Work shows a split. The unemployment rate was 3.8% in 2025, 0.5 percentage points below the US figure (4.3%). But only 55.8% of residents aged 16 and older were in the labor force, working or looking for work, the 2nd lowest⁴⁸ rate. People outside the labor force are not counted as unemployed. Only 6.5% of workers worked from home, the 2nd lowest⁴⁹ share.

Immigrants, languages and roots

Immigrants are rare. 3.0% of residents were born abroad, the 3rd lowest²³ share, and 4.7% of people aged 5 and older speak a language other than English at home, the 3rd lowest⁵⁰.

The most reported ancestries in 2020–2024 were English (10.6%), American (10.0%) and Irish (7.4%). Many residents give no specific ancestry: 27.8%⁵¹ of answers were unclassified or not reported.

Homelessness and veterans

The January 2025 count found 1,245 people experiencing homelessness, 4.2 per 10,000 residents, the lowest in the nation. The count rose from 1,041⁵² a year earlier. 151,386 veterans live in the state, 6.6% of civilian adults, 0.7 percentage points above the US figure (5.9%)⁵³.