New Bedford, Massachusetts demographics

New Bedford, MA demographics: median age 37.0; 17.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree. Age, race, households, languages and education, ACS 2020–2024 with margins of error.

ACS 2020–2024 · New Bedford city, Massachusetts · Incorporated city · GEOID 2545000. The survey estimates a population of 100,998 for its five-year window. This is separate from the annual July 2025 population estimate on the city overview.

Median age in New Bedford is 37.0 years, with a 90% margin of error of 0.8 years. There are 42,271 households (±859). 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	37.0 ±0.8	40.0 ±0.1	38.9 ±0.1

Age groups · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 100,998
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Under 18	24,093 ±1,224	23.9% ±1.2 pp	19.4%	22.0%
18–34	23,319 ±1,098	23.1% ±1.1 pp	23.9%	22.8%
35–64	38,074 ±1,481	37.7% ±1.5 pp	38.9%	38.0%
65 and older	15,512 ±922	15.4% ±0.9 pp	17.9%	17.2%

Sex categories as published by ACS · B01001 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 100,998
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Male	51,268 ±918	50.8% ±0.9 pp	48.9%	49.5%
Female	49,730 ±913	49.2% ±0.9 pp	51.1%	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: 100,998
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
White alone	56,610 ±1,919	56.1% ±1.9 pp	68.6%	61.0%
Black or African American alone	5,357 ±1,043	5.3% ±1.0 pp	6.8%	12.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native alone	694 ±323	0.7% ±0.3 pp	0.2%	0.9%
Asian alone	1,271 ±408	1.3% ±0.4 pp	7.3%	6.0%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone	86 ±95 · low precision	0.1% ±0.1 pp · low precision	0.0%	0.2%
Some other race alone	17,819 ±1,911	17.6% ±1.9 pp	5.8%	7.1%
Two or more races	19,161 ±1,617	19.0% ±1.6 pp	11.1%	12.6%

Hispanic or Latino origin · B03003 · ACS 2020–2024 Total population: 100,998
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Not Hispanic or Latino	74,928 ±1,684	74.2% ±1.7 pp	86.7%	80.7%
Hispanic or Latino	26,070 ±1,685	25.8% ±1.7 pp	13.3%	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: 42,271
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Married-couple family	12,989 ±595	30.7% ±1.3 pp	45.9%	46.9%
Other family: male householder, no spouse present	3,195 ±418	7.6% ±1.0 pp	4.7%	5.1%
Other family: female householder, no spouse present	7,896 ±481	18.7% ±1.1 pp	11.9%	12.2%
Nonfamily: householder living alone	15,425 ±929	36.5% ±2.1 pp	28.8%	28.7%
Nonfamily: householder not living alone	2,766 ±421	6.5% ±1.0 pp	8.9%	7.0%

Households with children · B11005 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 42,271
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Households with people under 18	13,062 ±581	30.9% ±1.2 pp	27.9%	29.5%
Households without people under 18	29,209 ±988	69.1% ±1.9 pp	72.1%	70.5%

Household size · B11016 · ACS 2020–2024 Households: 42,271
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
One-person nonfamily households	15,425 ±929	36.5% ±2.1 pp	28.8%	28.7%
Two-person households	10,929 ±761	25.9% ±1.7 pp	33.3%	33.8%
Three-person households	6,441 ±630	15.2% ±1.5 pp	16.5%	15.3%
Four-person households	5,093 ±606	12.0% ±1.4 pp	13.5%	12.6%
Five-person households	2,681 ±414	6.3% ±1.0 pp	5.2%	5.9%
Six-person households	1,095 ±323	2.6% ±0.8 pp	1.8%	2.2%
Seven or more people	607 ±203	1.4% ±0.5 pp	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: 100,998
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Native	80,380 ±1,573	79.6% ±1.6 pp	82.0%	85.9%
Foreign born	20,618 ±1,571	20.4% ±1.6 pp	18.0%	14.1%

Language spoken at home · C16001 · ACS 2020–2024 Population age 5 and older: 94,132
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
English only	58,618 ±1,920	62.3% ±2.0 pp	74.9%	77.7%
Spanish	16,207 ±1,422	17.2% ±1.5 pp	9.7%	13.6%
French, Haitian, or Cajun	1,987 ±583	2.1% ±0.6 pp	1.9%	0.7%
German or other West Germanic	63 ±52 · low precision	0.1% ±0.1 pp · low precision	0.3%	0.5%
Russian, Polish, or other Slavic	33 ±33 · low precision	0.0% ±0.0 pp · low precision	1.0%	0.7%
Other Indo-European	15,675 ±1,497	16.7% ±1.6 pp	6.1%	2.0%
Korean	44 ±42 · low precision	0.0% ±0.0 pp · low precision	0.3%	0.3%
Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese	260 ±166 · low precision	0.3% ±0.2 pp · low precision	2.2%	1.1%
Vietnamese	73 ±103 · low precision	0.1% ±0.1 pp · low precision	0.7%	0.5%
Tagalog, including Filipino	191 ±119 · low precision	0.2% ±0.1 pp · low precision	0.1%	0.6%
Other Asian and Pacific Island	109 ±83 · low precision	0.1% ±0.1 pp · low precision	1.3%	1.1%
Arabic	68 ±58 · low precision	0.1% ±0.1 pp · low precision	0.6%	0.5%
Other and unspecified	804 ±389	0.9% ±0.4 pp	1.0%	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: 67,657
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Less than high school graduate	15,756 ±1,080	23.3% ±1.6 pp	8.6%	10.4%
High school graduate or equivalency	23,501 ±1,342	34.7% ±1.9 pp	22.6%	26.0%
Some college, no degree	10,626 ±738	15.7% ±1.1 pp	14.1%	19.1%
Associate’s degree	6,280 ±651	9.3% ±1.0 pp	7.5%	8.8%
Bachelor’s degree	7,956 ±698	11.8% ±1.0 pp	25.5%	21.6%
Graduate or professional degree	3,538 ±400	5.2% ±0.6 pp	21.8%	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: 99,193
Category	Count ± MOE	Share ± MOE (pp)	Massachusetts	U.S.
Same house	87,700 ±1,375	88.4% ±1.4 pp	88.3%	87.7%
Moved within same county	7,258 ±1,082	7.3% ±1.1 pp	5.6%	6.3%
Moved from a different county in the same state	2,027 ±390	2.0% ±0.4 pp	3.0%	3.1%
Moved from a different state	998 ±338	1.0% ±0.3 pp	2.2%	2.3%
Moved from abroad	1,210 ±641 · low precision	1.2% ±0.6 pp · low precision	0.9%	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

5.4% of New Bedford residents (±0.6 percentage points) had no health insurance coverage when surveyed, compared with 2.6% in Massachusetts and 8.4% nationally. 86.6% 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	New Bedford	Massachusetts	U.S.	Compared with Massachusetts
People without health insurance Civilian noninstitutionalized population	5.4% ±0.6 pp	2.6%	8.4%	Higher
Households with a broadband subscription Households	86.6% ±0.9 pp	92.8%	91.0%	Lower
Veterans Civilian population age 18 and older	4.0% ±0.6 pp	4.3%	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 New Bedford . 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 New Bedford housing and cost context or return to the city profile.