Gaffney, South Carolina demographics

Gaffney, SC demographics: median age 31.9; 23.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree. Age, race, households, languages and education, ACS 2020–2024 with margins of error.

ACS 2020–2024 · Gaffney city, South Carolina · Incorporated city · GEOID 4528060. The survey estimates a population of 12,596 for its five-year window. This is separate from the annual July 2025 population estimate on the city overview.

Median age in Gaffney is 31.9 years, with a 90% margin of error of 2.1 years. There are 4,635 households (±277). Age and household distributions show how these totals are composed; they do not establish which neighborhood suits a particular person.

Every count and share is an estimate. “±” is a 90% margin of error (MOE); pp means percentage points. Derived shares use the category count divided by the named universe. Aggregated category MOEs and percentage MOEs are approximate. A margin larger than half its estimate is flagged as low precision. Blank source uncertainty is shown as unavailable, never zero.

Age distribution and sex

City, state and U.S. estimates · ACS 2020–2024
Measure / survey universe	City estimate ± MOE	State estimate ± MOE	U.S. estimate ± MOE
Median age Total population · years	31.9 ±2.1	40.2 ±0.2	38.9 ±0.1

Age groups · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 12,596
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Under 18	2,774 ±459	22.0% ±3.6 pp	21.4%	22.0%
18–34	4,025 ±440	32.0% ±3.5 pp	22.0%	22.8%
35–64	3,815 ±437	30.3% ±3.5 pp	37.7%	38.0%
65 and older	1,982 ±289	15.7% ±2.3 pp	18.9%	17.2%

Sex categories as published by ACS · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 12,596
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Male	6,110 ±373	48.5% ±3.0 pp	48.7%	49.5%
Female	6,486 ±365	51.5% ±2.9 pp	51.3%	50.5%

The age groups are mutually exclusive and cover the entire population. The sex categories follow this ACS table’s published classification; they are not a survey of gender identity.

Race and Hispanic origin

Race · B02001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 12,596
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
White alone	5,198 ±598	41.3% ±4.7 pp	63.3%	61.0%
Black or African American alone	5,121 ±573	40.7% ±4.5 pp	24.8%	12.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native alone	79 ±70 · low precision	0.6% ±0.6 pp · low precision	0.4%	0.9%
Asian alone	68 ±73 · low precision	0.5% ±0.6 pp · low precision	1.8%	6.0%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.1%	0.2%
Some other race alone	666 ±323	5.3% ±2.6 pp	2.8%	7.1%
Two or more races	1,464 ±419	11.6% ±3.3 pp	6.8%	12.6%

Hispanic or Latino origin · B03003 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 12,596
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Not Hispanic or Latino	11,558 ±346	91.8% ±2.7 pp	92.6%	80.7%
Hispanic or Latino	1,038 ±341	8.2% ±2.7 pp	7.4%	19.3%

Hispanic origin and race are separate questions. People of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race and appear in both tables. Do not add the Hispanic share to race shares. Race alone and two-or-more-race groups are the mutually exclusive categories of the race table.

Household types, children and living alone

Household types · B11001 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 4,635
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Married-couple family	1,216 ±189	26.2% ±3.8 pp	47.1%	46.9%
Other family: male householder, no spouse present	293 ±140	6.3% ±3.0 pp	4.5%	5.1%
Other family: female householder, no spouse present	957 ±158	20.6% ±3.2 pp	13.4%	12.2%
Nonfamily: householder living alone	1,882 ±300	40.6% ±6.0 pp	29.2%	28.7%
Nonfamily: householder not living alone	287 ±107	6.2% ±2.3 pp	5.8%	7.0%

Households with children · B11005 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 4,635
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Households with people under 18	1,159 ±197	25.0% ±4.0 pp	28.6%	29.5%
Households without people under 18	3,476 ±341	75.0% ±5.8 pp	71.4%	70.5%

Household size · B11016 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 4,635
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
One-person nonfamily households	1,882 ±300	40.6% ±6.0 pp	29.2%	28.7%
Two-person households	1,201 ±225	25.9% ±4.6 pp	36.3%	33.8%
Three-person households	688 ±194	14.8% ±4.1 pp	15.4%	15.3%
Four-person households	632 ±166	13.6% ±3.5 pp	11.6%	12.6%
Five-person households	112 ±67 · low precision	2.4% ±1.4 pp · low precision	5.0%	5.9%
Six-person households	89 ±61 · low precision	1.9% ±1.3 pp · low precision	1.7%	2.2%
Seven or more people	31 ±47 · low precision	0.7% ±1.0 pp · low precision	0.9%	1.4%

A family household contains related people under the Census definition. A nonfamily household can contain one person or unrelated people sharing a home. Households with children can also appear in the household-type and size tables, so those tables must not be added together. Household estimates exclude people living in group quarters from the household universe.

Nativity and languages spoken at home

Nativity · B05002 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 12,596
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Native	11,793 ±242	93.6% ±1.9 pp	94.2%	85.9%
Foreign born	803 ±237	6.4% ±1.9 pp	5.8%	14.1%

Language spoken at home · C16001 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 5 and older: 11,513
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
English only	10,518 ±355	91.4% ±2.3 pp	91.6%	77.7%
Spanish	789 ±281	6.9% ±2.4 pp	5.3%	13.6%
French, Haitian, or Cajun	51 ±44 · low precision	0.4% ±0.4 pp · low precision	0.3%	0.7%
German or other West Germanic	48 ±50 · low precision	0.4% ±0.4 pp · low precision	0.3%	0.5%
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic	55 ±60 · low precision	0.5% ±0.5 pp · low precision	0.4%	0.7%
Other Indo-European	29 ±52 · low precision	0.3% ±0.5 pp · low precision	0.8%	2.0%
Korean	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.1%	0.3%
Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.2%	1.1%
Vietnamese	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.2%	0.5%
Tagalog, including Filipino	23 ±36 · low precision	0.2% ±0.3 pp · low precision	0.2%	0.6%
Other Asian and Pacific Island	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.4%	1.1%
Arabic	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.1%	0.5%
Other and unspecified	0 ±22 · low precision	0.0% ±0.2 pp · low precision	0.3%	0.8%

Foreign born means not a U.S. citizen at birth; it includes naturalized citizens. Language categories describe speech at home among people age five and older. A language other than English at home does not establish that someone cannot speak English. This city page uses the published C16001 summary categories because the more detailed B16001 table does not provide these city records in this release.

Educational attainment

Highest completed education · B15003 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 25 and older: 7,870
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Less than high school graduate	1,220 ±277	15.5% ±3.4 pp	9.9%	10.4%
High school graduate or equivalency	2,696 ±393	34.3% ±4.6 pp	28.2%	26.0%
Some college, no degree	1,529 ±313	19.4% ±3.8 pp	19.8%	19.1%
Associate’s degree	609 ±165	7.7% ±2.0 pp	10.0%	8.8%
Bachelor’s degree	1,086 ±315	13.8% ±3.9 pp	19.8%	21.6%
Graduate or professional degree	730 ±232	9.3% ±2.9 pp	12.3%	14.1%

The denominator excludes residents under 25. Each person is counted in the highest attainment category they completed. This table does not measure the quality of local schools or the education level of every current student.

Residence one year earlier

Geographic mobility · B07003 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 1 and older: 12,367
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	South Carolina	U.S.
Same house	9,844 ±509	79.6% ±4.1 pp	87.2%	87.7%
Moved within same county	1,496 ±434	12.1% ±3.5 pp	5.5%	6.3%
Moved from a different county in the same state	445 ±175	3.6% ±1.4 pp	3.1%	3.1%
Moved from a different state	509 ±212	4.1% ±1.7 pp	3.7%	2.3%
Moved from abroad	73 ±55 · low precision	0.6% ±0.4 pp · low precision	0.4%	0.6%

These are respondents’ residence patterns one year before their survey response, pooled across the five-year window. They are not a net migration count for 2025. A person can move to a different house within the same city or county; moves within the same county should not automatically be interpreted as new arrivals to the city.

Health insurance, internet access and veterans

13.4% of Gaffney residents (±2.7 percentage points) had no health insurance coverage when surveyed, compared with 9.6% in South Carolina and 8.4% nationally. 85.6% of households subscribe to broadband of any type, including cellular data plans. A subscription is not the same as available service: the FCC National Broadband Map shows providers at a specific address.

City, state and U.S. shares · ACS 2020–2024
Measure	Gaffney	South Carolina	U.S.	Compared with South Carolina
People without health insurance Civilian noninstitutionalized population	13.4% ±2.7 pp	9.6%	8.4%	Higher
Households with a broadband subscription Households	85.6% ±3.7 pp	88.8%	91.0%	Not statistically different
Veterans Civilian population age 18 and older	7.0% ±2.2 pp	8.3%	6.2%	Not statistically different

Reading and reusing the estimates

The Census table links above lead to the original detailed tables. Counts, source universes and uncertainty are retained in the source observation download for Gaffney . Compare these figures with the same survey window; do not compare one city’s five-year estimate with another city’s annual estimate as though they measured the same period. For methods, see uncertainty and denominator calculations.

Read Gaffney housing and cost context or return to the city profile.